Lost freedom
by PicUnrelated
Summary: AU Maka's hometown in the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming gets attacked by a ruthless warlord. After burning the town down, he proceeds to capture the survivors in order to sell them as slaves. Maka is determined to escape and return to her homeland, but will she suceed?
1. The Capture

**Dear readers,**

** Thank you for reading the first chapter of my first fanfiction. As some of you may be aware, this story has been inspired by the story "Psychopomp" by ParadiseAvenger, which can be found here [** s/7859352/1/Psychopomp**], which I personally recommend. Before anybody accuses me of ripping his or her story of, please read both stories first and then draw suitable comparisons.**

** On another note, I don't really have much experience with the rating system, as this is my first fanfiction. At time of writing I consider T to be an adequate rating. If you think this is too low, please inform me so I can change it. **

** Anyway, this concludes my first author's note. If you would please read and review my story. I always appreciate honest reviews.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated**

"I'm being sold into slavery? I don't know how...", cried Crona.

"Halts Maul du Schweinehund", yelled a harsh voice. It was followed by the sound of whip impacting human flesh. Maka sighed, Crona had just expressed the feelings of everyone in her village who was still alive.

The slavers' attack came in the middle of the night. Maka was awoken by the sound of detonating mortar shells. This caused her to panic, which is why she ran out into the street. Half the village was burning. Then a team of slavers systematically herded them together, shooting anyone who dared to resist, and out of the village. She saw the corpses of the village's militia on the way, they had fought bravely, but now it was in vain. Her father was among them.

In the front of the village, where the slavers had already build a temporary camp, presumably for the purpose of processing their new acquisitions. First they lined them up. However, there was a young mother, who didn't want to let go of her daughter. A slaver solved this problem by beating the mother with the butt of his rifle. After the slavers had lined them up, they sorted them by gender, so they could start to asses their loot.

A man with a suit walked through the lines. He talked to every single one of them. Sometimes he signaled the slavers to take somebody aside. But most of them remained where they were.

"Hello young lady", he said to Maka once he came round to her, "Do you have any relatives outside this village who can pay some ransom?" She thought about lying to him,but what if he found out she lied. He would certainly find out.

"No", she answered, and he went over to the next captive. He was closely followed by another slaver, who basically ripped the clothes of her body. She had seen that he was more careful when he was dealing with a more a delicate garment, like the mayor's wife's silk nightgown. Maka's body started shaking in the cold West Wyoming air. She was in a daze, not really realizing what was happening, like in a nightmare before one realizes that one has a nightmare. Next, a slaver who was carrying pliers came along. Maka wondered what he would do, but he just looked at her and moved on to the next captive.

Farther away from her was a slaver, who had a white bind with a red cross on it. He was thoroughly inspecting an elderly woman. Then he gave a sing to two other slaver's who led her away. Maka could hear gunshots from the direction they were dragging her. She saw how the slaver with the pliers pulled the wedding ring of the finger of a woman who had been married earlier this year. The slaver with the white bind was inspecting the woman next to Maka, Susanne. It was at this moment that Maka realized that her life may be over in a couple of minutes. If this man found reason for it, he would send her to the firing squad. She didn't want to die. He made a gesture. Susanne would get shot and maybe it would be her turn next. The slaver started examining her now. Maybe he would not order her execution. Who was she kidding. Susanne didn't make the cut, and she was taller and stronger than her. Well, Maka did get better grades in school, but the slaver couldn't possibly know that. He was looking into her mouth now. Her remaining lifetime would be until he finished plus the time the trip to the firing squad would take. It couldn't be more than five minutes now. He stopped looking into her mouth, now he would give the order to shoot her. Except that he didn't. Instead he moved on to Meme Tantane. She wasn't going to get shot! She would not die today! She would see the sun rise again! But from where? That's when she realized that these men were slavers, taking anyone they can capture and selling them.

Looking over to Susanne, she saw that a different slaver with pliers was pulling some of her teeth. The ones with fillings, to be precise. Maka suddenly became very grateful that she didn't have any fillings. Yet another slaver went trough the lines and put some sort of thing on their necks. When it was her turn, Maka could hear a lock clicking shut. Obviously some sort of slave collar. The next slaver who was busy examining them was carrying a clipboard with him and seemed to be talking nonstop.

"Looks... but... definitively...", he muttered, Maka could only make out a few words, then he asked her: "Are you educated in any way?".

"Well, I can read.", said Maka reluctantly, afraid of making him angry.

"What is written here?", he asked, turning his clipboard around and pointing at the title of his the document. Maka couldn't recognize the first letter of the word. The bad lighting also didn't help. She knew she had to say something. Soon. Wait, would she want them to know that she could read, well somewhat. But she already told him she could. He would get angry and do something nasty to her if she couldn't convince him that she could read. But what the hell was written there? She could only recognize a few letters of the word. Then he whacked her over the head with his clipboard.

"So this one is worth eleven million new Nevada Dollars", he said to himself as he wrote on his clipboard. Maka wondered how much this sum, that her entire life had been so brutally reduced to, was actually worth. How much were eleven million new Nevada dollars in the Democratic Republic of New Nevada? Did that country have any laws limiting abuse of slaves, like the Federal Republic of southern Michigan, or would her future owner be allowed to pull her limb from limb if he wanted to and had a suitable instrument?


	2. Transport conditions

Maka's train of thought was interrupted when the slavers started to load them into trucks. On the truck's floor were two rows of foot-cuffs, with twenty sets of foot-cuffs each, each of which contained four foot-cuffs. Between these two rows was a half-wall. There were chains hanging from the two outer walls of the cargo area and both sides of the half-wall. The slavers first connected the chain to their collar, then they cuffed their feet, and finished by cuffing their hands together in front of them. As it was Maka's turn to be cuffed to the floor, she wondered if the captives could maybe overpower the slavers. But the slavers had guns, they could just shoot them. And these weren't shotguns or rifles like the militia used, these were military grade assault rifles. And one them was training his rifle on her, trying anything would be suicide. Or a heroic sacrifice. If they wanted to have a chance of overpowering the slavers, they had to act now, before they were all restrained. Before she could finalize a plan, she was already completely restrained. All she could do was watch as the slavers restrained the rest of her neighbors. After the slavers were finished loading the captives into the trucks, one of them sat down on a chair on the far side from the entrance.

The captives were packed extremely close together, leaving every single captive only a small area to themselves. There was no way to avoid touching the captives next to one. It wasn't possible to lie down, there was only roughly a third of the space needed for that and the chains on their feet were to short for that. Standing up also wasn't possible, because of the chain that connected their collars to the wall. They could only sit there until they would eventually be released.

Maka took a good long look at her handcuffs. They seemed to be well maintained, shiny and clean. Maybe they have been cleaned recently. She wondered if it would be possible to pick the lock. While she was wondering, Crona's sudden realization interrupted her, which provided her with the valuable information that talking would earn her a taste of the whip. She thought about how she could escape. Since she was securely tied down, and breaking the cuffs with a file or similar object, not that she had one on hand, would take to long, her only hope was to trick the slavers into untying her and to then run like hell. But how could she do that? Maybe if she told them that she had to pee. She decided to to put her plan into operation.

"I have to pee" she said. The guard stood up, carefully made his way over to her and said "That's your problem" while raising his whip. Maka instinctively raised her arms to protect her face. The very next moment she felt a sharp pain on her belly. The guard made his way back to his seat and asked if anybody else had something to say. Everyone remained silent. Maka rubbed the painful red streak the whip had left. She wondered if and when the slavers would let them relieve themselves.

Meanwhile the slavers had broken camp and their leader was shouting some orders about a forced march. This filled Maka with malicious joy, because forced marches are exhausting, with any luck at least some of the slavers would drop dead from exhaustion, while the captives were driven. It was the gratification of seeing someone you hate suffer, which eases the pain of oneself being in a much worse position. However, she had to wonder why they were putting up a forced march. Why where they in such a hurry, why did the slavers march themselves to death instead of letting the captives march. Was this some sort of downsizing scheme? That wouldn't surprise her much, after all, a man who builds his career around burning down villages, ripping families apart and selling people, sometimes even children, into slavery, would not really stick at anything.

On the other hand, what if it was not a downsizing scheme? Were they planning another slave raid? Slave trading is a business after all, the more people they could capture, the more money they made. However, one would have to consider logistical aspects as well. She had counted twenty trucks, and they put eighty captives into each truck. Given the rather large population of her village, they couldn't have any capacities left to transport additional captives. But how many people did they actually take captive? They had shot all the weak and infirm, and massacred any resistance. They probably weren't attacking again. If they were not attacking, they must be retreating. But what were they running from? Obviously the army. However, most of West Wyoming's army was tied up fighting the war against the New Confederate States of America, formerly known as East Wyoming.

Maka began to wonder if the army would win in a direct confrontation, if they were to catch up with the slavers. They would probably outnumber the slavers at least 2 to 1, and the slavers would be exhausted from the forced march. There was no way these slavers would win against the glorious military of the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming, the military would crush the slavers and then liberate the captives. Of course, that was only if the army caught the slavers before they left the country. If the slavers made it out of the country first, the army would be unable to do anything without starting another war with either the Republic of Odgen or the Kingdom of South Idaho. If only she could accelerate the arrival of the army.


	3. First day in captivity

Given the fact that she couldn't do anything else but wait, Maka decided that it would be best if she tried to sleep. However, falling asleep was rather difficult considering the risisg sun and the uncomfortable position she had been forced into. She tried to move herself into a more comfortable position, but decided to stop once her ankles started to hurt because her foot-cuffs were chafing them. It was at that time that she noticed that the guard had fallen asleep. Using her change to talk to someone without earning another taste of whip, she turned to Meme Tatane, but she couldn't really think of any way to start a conversation in this situation.

"How are you?", Maka asked quietly, in order to not wake the guard. Meme turned to her, then she looked both terrified and pleadingly towards the guard, as if she wanted to say: "She spoke, not me. Please don't whip me"

"He's asleep", said Maka pointing at the guard, "he won't whip us"

"What a relief", said Meme, "That dammed thing looks like it hurts"

"Tell me about it" said Maka, rubbing the spot on her belly where the guard whipped her.

"I'm actually surprised that they use a simple leather whip. I have heard that most slavers use metal lined whips" said Meme.

"They probably use these because they want to sell us" said Maka, considering that even a small cut could get infected.

"They didn't hesitate to kill us earlier" said Meme

"That was when we could still fight back", said Maka "but now that we're securely tied down, they don't have to worry about any resistance"

"All I've been thinking was that if I had something to pick these cuffs, I might be able to escape" said Meme.

Then they heard the slaver's leader yell orders: "Company halt! Twenty minutes lunch break!" Maka and Meme instantly went silent, because they knew that the guard would wake up now. Somebody who sleeps on duty would definitively wake up if someone yelled "lunch". She wondered if they would be give something to eat, too. A few minutes later another slaver stood in front of the trucks cargo area.

"Hey Sam, I'm next on guard duty." said the other slaver.

"I could easily take two shifts in a row" said Sam.

"But now it's my turn" said the other slaver, "go get something to eat, you'll need it."

"What's on the menu?" asked Sam, walking towards the truck's exit.

"The chef's infamous vegetable stew" said the other slaver, while climbing into the truck.

"Yuk! Oh, and keep an eye on that one", Sam said, pointing at Maka while handing over the whip, "she's a troublemaker"

"I'll keep that in mind", said the other slaver, now sitting down in the guard's seat.

Maka and the other captives waited patiently for something to eat, they were very hungry, because they hadn't had any breakfast. She could already hear somebody's stomach grumbling, but it could just as easily be her own. She wondered if and when they would be given food. The cheapest solution for the slavers would be to let them starve. However, such policies could reduce the slaver's profit. They would probably be given only enough food so that they wouldn't die.

Over the course of the afternoon, the temperature in the truck continued to climb. Also, the slavers didn't allow any of them to relieve themselves, forcing the captives to urinate and defecate right where they were sitting. This, together with the uncomfortable temperatures, lead to an unbearable condition. Maka just hoped that the army would rescue them soon. But what would happen to her if they didn't? They would either be sold to a local slave market, if they were lucky, or to mine or a fuel farm, if they were unlucky,. Maka looked down on herself and determined that she hopefully didn't have the stature for the backbreaking labor in a mine or worse, a fuel farm. There were enough strong men in the village to fill the positions in the mines and on the fuel farms. If she would indeed be lucky enough to be sold to a local slave market, she would then be sold to somebody, whom she would then be forced to work for. She wondered how this person would treat her. She could only hope that she wouldn't be sold to someone who enjoyed hurting people.

A few hours after nightfall her thoughts were interrupted when the slavers' leader gave the order to make camp for the night. Maka wondered if she would now be given food. Meanwhile she could hear the slavers working to put up their camp. Then they moved the trucks to form a ring around the camp. A short time after that she heard the slaver's chef yell: "Dinner is ready!"

Roughly half an hour later a slaver handed them their food ration. It was a small piece of bread. Maka ate her bread quickly. After she was done she looked at her neighbours, only to see that they had also eaten their bread already. Then she felt ashamed of herself, because she only looked at them to see if she could steal their bread. A short while later another slaver handed several water canteens to them.

"There's one canteen for five of you" he said with a friendly smile on his face, "better ration it, there won't be another one until tomorrow". Maka watched as the canteens where passed along, each person on the way drinking a big gulp of water. She was so thirsty that it was torturous to watch the other captives drink. They drank like animals. She immediately started to drink greedily after Meme had handed her the canteen. After her thirst had been sated, she handed the canteen over to the captive on her left. She was still hungry, but at least she wasn't thirsty anymore.

Then she tried to sleep, but due to the uncomfortable position she had been chained into, she was unable to fall asleep for several hours. But eventually she became so tired that she simply fell into a dream- and restless sleep.


	4. Patty

In the morning they were once again given food and, surprisingly, water. At noon, the slavers made a break, but the captives were not fed. They marched through until late at night, made camp and fed the captives. This routine continued for several days, until one day the slavers' leader didn't give the order to break camp one morning. Instead he gave the order to rest for a day.

This order devastated Maka's hope. The fact that he put in a day's rest meant that he was no longer afraid of pursuers, therefore, they must have left West Wyoming. If they were no longer in West Wyoming, then there was no hope left of her being rescued.

A bit later a slaver bought the captives their food. To Maka, it had a taste of hopelessness, like the one one would expect a last meal to have. She ate her bread with disgust. How could she reattain her freedom now? There was no way she could escape the slavers, and she had heard that slave markets were very well secured. The only way to escape would be to wait to be sold and then run away. She best place to run would be West Wyoming. But that was when it struck here that she didn't know where she was and that she had only a vague idea of where she would sold. She would have to plan her escape very carefully.

Maka spend the rest of the morning contemplating how to escape and which information and what supplies she would have to gather before she could make a run for it. A map would definitly come in handy. She would also need supplies or she would not make it far. And she would have to get rid of that collar they put on her. She put her hands on it to feel it. It was made of some kind of fabric with some kind of metal woven into it, getting it off would be very difficult. In the back she could feel the lock and before that, a belt buckle like object, througth which the collar went. It couldn't be pulled out without unlocking the lock, that would be too easy. But it was possible to pull it the other way. So any struggling against the chain would result in the collar thightening. Truly an ingenious and sadistic idea. In the front there was a small and thin metal plate, roughtly as wide as an index finger and as three times the width of her ring finger high, firmly attached to the collar. It was probably a label, to be filled with her future owner's information, so if somebody caught her running away she could be returned to him and punished.

"Hands off the collar, or I will have to whip you" said the guard in a sing song voice. Maka immediately put her hands down and looked at the guard. She had stopped noticing them two days in, but what struck her about this guard was the fact that the guard was female, even though most other slavers were male. She had short blonde hair, blue eyes and rosy cheeks. Maka wondered how a young girl like her could take up such a despicable profession. She also noted that this slaver was less aggressive than her colleagues, they would have whipped her by now.

"Hey Patty, here's you're lunch" said another slaver. Patty climbed through the truck to the front and took her lunch.

"Yuk! It's that dammed chef's vegetable stew. Serving that 2 days in a row has to be a crime against humanity", said Patty in disgust.

"Actually, that's left over from yesterday", said the other slaver.

"Then why are you bringing me this?", asked Patty.

"Order from Dr. Eisenberg", said the other slaver.

"And why?", asked Patty.

"Because he knows you hate it" said the other slaver.

"He should get over himself" said Patty, now sounding slightly angry.

"He has his reasons", said the other slaver.

"And what would those be?", asked Patty.

"Oh, I don't know. I'm not him, after all. But I guess it has something to do with how we lost a whole day's supply of water thanks to you", said the other slaver.

"We have more water than we will ever need.", said Patty.

"You can be glad we have enough water. Otherwise you'd get more than 4 shifts of guard duty and 50 lashes. If we would not have enough water left, you'd be swinging from a branch right now", said the other slaver before turning around and walking away. Patty climbed back through the truck, sat down in her seat and began eating the stew.

Maka was worried. Patty had been assigned to four shifts of guard duty in a row and would later be whipped as punishment. She feared Patty would abuse the captives in order to distract herself from her upcoming whipping and to keep herself awake. It had to be upcoming, she hadn't heard any whippings that consisted of more than 10 lashes until now. She decided to be quiet and to not draw attention to herself, so she would not be a victim of some arbitrary punishment Patty decided to dish out.


	5. Patty's reign

Patty regained her good mood rather fast and the afternoon went by without any incidents. They were given food and water at the usual time. All went well until Meme fell asleep next to Maka. Patty then stood up and made her way through to her.

"If I can't sleep, then neither can you", said Patty in a sing song voice before she whipped Meme, who screamed in pain.

"Be quiet!" ordered Patty, whipping Meme a second time. Meme screamed again, earning her a third lash. This time she just whimpered. Maka watched this with horror, her mouth hanging open.

"Do you think this is funny?" Patty asked harshly, turning to Maka.

"No, Patty, I don't think it's funny" said Maka in panic, raising her arm protectively

"That's Miss Thompson to you!" said Patty, grabbing Maka's hair and pulling her up. The pain was agonizing

"Please, Miss Thompson, just stop!" said Maka, desperately trying to free herself from Patty's grip, but Patty was stronger than her and she was still handcuffed. Patty had already pulled her up to a point where the chain's slack was exhausted, pulling Maka's slave collar taut. It was not yet tight enough to cause asphyxiation, but it still hurt. Patty then started to shake Maka's head violently back and forth, causing her scalp to explode in pain.

"If I catch you drinking anything tonight, I will flay the skin from your bone, is that understood?", said Patty, letting go of Maka's hair. Maka fell to the ground, but regained her composure relatively quickly.

"Yes, Miss Thompson", said Maka.

"Shut, up!", shouted Patty, whipping Maka. Maka desperately rubbed the painful red streak left by the whip. Patty returned to her seat with a big sadistic smile on her face.

Patty could not think of anything to do that didn't involve abusing the captives. First came the rule that nobody was allowed to sleep. Then she made a captive on the other side count to tenty, replacing all prime numbers with the word "bleh". Maka had never heard of "prime numbers". Apparently one, four, six, ten, fourteen, fifteen, twenty, twenty-one, and twenty-four were prime numbers. After she had whipped the first captive four times, who got to twenty-five, she must have discovered some kind of pattern, or she got very lucky, Patty told the captive sitting opposite to the first one to continue counting. Maka desperately tried to make out the pattern that was there to these prime numbers, in case she would have to count. However, Patty got bored with the game after they got above tenty. After five more captives got four lashes, they were at twelvety, and the game stopped. Maka wondered why Patty hadn't whipped any of the "players" more than four times, since the slavers didn't give a rat's ass about their rights, the rights of which they had been stripped completely once the slavers had crossed the border. Then Patty demonstrated how flexible a human wrist is, using Susanne as a test subject.

Patty entertained herself all night with her sadistic little games. Maka could now understand perfectly why Patty had become a slaver, seeing how easily she made her colleagues look like saints. In the morning, after the slavers had eaten breakfast, 4 people came to the truck. One, who pulling a small cart with food and water looked like he was the next one on guard duty. Two of them were slaves themselves. A middle aged blonde woman and a muscular,large and black haired man, both looked about the same age. The thing that amazed Maka about them was that they were both armed. The man was armed with an AK-47, like most slavers, and the woman had a pistol. The last person was an elderly man. He had gray hair and a matching gray beard. His uniform was adorned with several stars, four on each shoulder, he probably was a slaver of the highest rank. Maka assumed that he was either Dr. Eisenberg or one of his lieutenants.

The slaver with the food began handing it out amongst the captives. Then the large muscular man, whom Maka assumed to be some sort of bodyguard, began making his way over to Patty and pulled her over to the the entrance. Then Maka had a crazy plan to get revenge on Patty, and seeing that the stakes weren't that high for her, even if everything went wrong, she'd probably only get a single lash or a few more, she immediately put her plan into operation.

"Sir, Miss Thompson slept on guard duty, Dr Eisenberg, sir" said Maka, hoping that the respectful tone would prevent a whipping for her while ensuring a even more severe whipping for Patty, and that the man was truly Dr. Eisenberg.

"Könnten Sie das bitte wiederholen", said Dr. Eisenberg, making a gesture towards the blonde female slave, presumably his assistant, he added: "Übersetzen Sie"

"Could you please repeat that", translated Eisenberg's assistant.

"Miss Thompson, the guard, slept on guard duty, Dr. Eisenberg, Sir" said Maka.

"Fräulein Thompson, die Wache, hat während dem Wachdienst geschlafen" translated Eisenberg's assistant.

"Sie da", said Dr. Eisenberg, pointing at Susanne, "ist das wahr?"

"You there, is that true?" translated Dr. Eisenberg's assistant.

"Yes, it is" said Susanne, probably thinking about how Patty almost broke her hand.

"Ja", translated Dr. Eisenberg's assistant. Dr. Eisenberg turned to Patty, who was staring in disbelief and fear.

"What do you have to say for yourself?", asked Dr. Eisenberg.

"Lies, all lies!", shouted Patty. Dr. Eisenberg, his bodyguard and his assistant started to discuss among themselves in the same language that his assistant had translated from. Patty looked on, her face white as a ghost.

"Well, I can't really determine who's telling the truth here", said Dr. Eisenberg, "so we'll keep it at fifty lashes. And before I forget, that blonde slave gets a lash, too". Then the new guard made his way over to Maka, who didn't even bother to put up her hands defensively, and delivered a painful lash. Maka simply whimpered.


	6. Patty's punishment & the intermediary

A few minutes later Patty's punishment started. First Maka heard the 's order to bare and restrain Patty. Then he held a speech on the gravity of Patty's crime and why the punishment was necessary. Maka was to tired to pay attention. She could hear some fragments. Dr Eisenberg referenced people like Phoebe Spero, who apparently was some kind of philosopher, Socrates and a lot of other people, who most likely also where philosophers. Then Dr. Eisenberg offered Patty something to bite down on, before the ordered the punishment to commence. Patty begged desperately for mercy, like someone who was facing a firing squad. Patty's begging and pleading was music to Maka's ears, who, remembering the abuse suffered last night, took a good swig from the water canteen.

Maka heard the smack of the executioner's whip, followed by Patty screaming in pain while still begging for mercy. Maka quietly chuckled to herself. The executioner was taking his time, he waited for Patty to stop screaming before delivering the second smack. After three smacks, however, he stopped letting Patty calm down between lashes and delivered a lash every thirty seconds or so. After 20 lashes, Patty's pleading became ineligible and her screaming changed, she no longer seemed to be able to breathe properly between the lashes, turning it into a sobbing. After 25 lashes, Patty seemed to lack the strenght to scream as her screaming started to lose volume. After 30 lashes, Dr. Eisenberg ordered the executioner to stop to let Patty catch her breath, stating that this isn't a death sentence. Maka didn't know why, but she counted the seconds under her breath. After five times tenty seconds, Dr. Eisenberg ordered the punishment to resume. Patty's screaming had regained it's strenght, but not for long. After 10 lashes, ordered another break. Then the executioner delivered the final ten lashes, counting them down as he did so. After the last lash was delivered, Dr. Eisenberg yelled "Medic!".

With that, Patty's punishment was over. Maka couldn't say she didn't enjoy every second of it, and judging from the other captive's facial expression, they shared these feelings. The guard on the other hand looked a little sick to his stomach. Maka speculated that Patty was badly hurt from her punishment. The whip sounded like it was a lot meaner than the ones the guards used on a whim. Maybe it would leave permanent physical scars. Then it hit her that the punishment for runaway slaves was probably similar to the one Patty had just suffered. She had to be extra careful when she would escape, failure would be painful. Very painful.

The next few days went by rather quietly. The guards were not as sadistic as Patty, but they seemed to become more sadistic now that they were no longer conducting a forced march. Maka also overheard that Patty almost collapsed from exhaustion during the march on the day of her punishment, but sadly managed to keep going. On the third day a captive on the other side of the truck spilled the water given to them. The guard had to step in to prevent her neighbors from strangling her. The slavers ended up swapping her with another captive on another truck in order to prevent her neighbors from killing her. Maka could now understand why Patty was so harshly punished.

On the morning of the 11th day the slavers seemed to have arrived at their destination. First they unloaded the captives and lined them up again, the same way like they were lined up on the day of their original capture. Then a man in a grey suit went through the lines. He seemed to inspect the captives. When he got to each of them, he first looked on his clipboard, then inspected the captive personally before he gave a sing whereupon two slavers dragged said captive to one of three different groups. One group seemed to consist only of educated people, like the village's doctor. This was the smallest group, because most of the educated citizens from her village had someone who could pay ransom for them. It also consisted entirely of men, if Maka's mother hadn't died during childbirth, she would probably be the only woman in this group. Maka only knew her from her late father's stories. It's best not to dwell on the dead.

The second group consisted captives who were physically strong but lacked education. Despite the fact that most of these people had been drafted into the army, it still was the largest group. They would probably have to do harsh backbreaking labor, if they're lucky on a farm. If not, in a mine. And if they were really unlucky, on a fuel farm. This group consisted mostly of men, but there were a few women among them, too.

The third group consisted of those who were too uneducated to be among the first group and too weak to be in the second group. Maka was among them. What would they be used for? Probably housework. After the man in the gray suit was done sorting them into three groups, he started to sort the last group into two separate groups. Maka wondered, what his sorting criteria was. When he put the prettiest girl of the village into the other group, it hit Maka. He was sorting them based on attractiveness. These people he picked would be marketed as sex slaves. Maka was, for the first time in her live, thankful for her plain appearance.

After the man in the suit had finished sorting them, they were once again loaded into trucks and secured in the same way they were on their original capture. However, this truck's walls were made of of metal, instead of wood and camouflaged fabric like the slavers'. Then the guard took his place, he wore a more casual outfit than the slavers did, he looked similar to a member of the militia of Maka's village, however, he had an assault rifle and a whip, like the slavers. Then the doors were closed. It was dark. There was light coming in from some ventilation slits in the top of the truck. The guard turned some kind of lamp on.

The lamp intrigued Maka. It was small dark disk with a glass cylinder on top. In the glass cylinder was a sphere containing a bright light. There was some kind of smooth rope going out of the base of the disk. Maka wondered how this lamp worked. She knew that she had seen something like that before. A traveling salesman had once come into her village. One of the objects he had for sale was a similar lamp. It consisted of a black disk at the bottom and a blue disk at the top. In the middle was a clear material about which the salesman said that it's more durable and lighter than glass. In the center of the lamp was similar sphere to the one in the guard's lamp. The salesman had also explained Maka how the lamp worked. He said that if you put the lamp in the sun, it saves the sunlight and will give it off in the night. Sadly, the price of the lamp was ten Wyoming marks, more than twenty times her family's yearly income. She had never actually seen this kind of money.


	7. Examination

The truck started to move. It moved a lot faster than the slavers' trucks, now that there was no army marching next to them. After a short while the interior of the truck became unbearable hot and stuffy. After what felt like an eternity, the truck stopped. The doors where opened and eleven captives of the rightmost line were unloaded. Maka was thankful for the fresh air that entered the truck. Then the doors were closed again and the truck started to move again. To her horror Maka realized that she was in the leftmost line, she would be one of the last to be unloaded. The stuffy air in the truck was killing her. After some more time the truck stopped again, ten captives were unloaded. The next time seventeen captives were unloaded. The next time however, they unloaded eleven captives, but they also loaded an additional captive onto the truck. She was seated opposite to Maka.

The girl had long dark blonde hair. Her slave collar looked differently than the ones Maka and the other captives wore. The material seemed to be slightly darker. Her face reminded Maka of Miss Thompson, the most sadistic slaver. In fact, she looked like she could be her sister. She wondered whether the two were related, but she couldn't ask because the guard wasn't asleep.

After a another stop, at which 16 captives were unloaded, Maka and the remaining captives were unloaded, including Meme and the new captive. They were led into a worn gray building by guards wielding AK-47s. They went trough a door into a corridor and then through another door which was labeled "d-i-s-i-n-[?]-e-c-t..." Maka didn't have the time to read it all before they were ushered through. On the far side of the room, there was a square pool in the floor, roughly an arms length on each side and probably deep enough to completely submerge a grown man easily. It was filled with a clear, colorless liquid which had a nauseating smell to it. A guard, after putting on a pair of gloves, picked up a hose, which was lying in a nearby corner, and went over to the captives. He grabbed Maka and hosed her down from head to toe, front and back. The water was freezing. Then he led Maka over to the pool and pushed her in. The liquid caused a painful burning sensation all over Maka's skin. The general pain was nothing compared to the pain she felt in her ankles and wrists, which were red from being chained for several days. They felt as if someone was pouring boiling oil over them. She didn't even want to imagine how it would feel like if she had gotten some of the liquid in her eyes. After having her completely submerged into the liquid, the guard pulled her up by her hair. He pushed her towards another guard, who basically threw her into another room.

In the center of the room was a gray rectangular metal table. On the surface where four restraints, presumably for hands and feet. These restraints were connected over pulleys to a motorized machine under the table. On the far side of the room was a door. Maka read the sign on the door, slowly sounding out the words to herself, it said "[?]-e-r-c-h-a-n-d-i-[?]-e-S-t-o-r-a-[?]-e". She wondered whether she should just go through the door, since she was merchandize to them. But then she thought that if they wanted her to do that, they would have given her a corresponding order. Or maybe they thought it was obvious what they wanted, and therefore didn't give an order. On the other hand, depending on what that slaver who whacked her with the clipboard wrote down, they might not know she could read She only knew that they would whip her if she did anything that could somehow be interpreted as disobedience. Maka lowered her head in despair and clasped her cuffed hands. There was probably no way to avoid the whip.

Just as she contemplated her situation, a man entered the room from another door on the right side of the room. He wore a white lab coat with a white apron on top. His mouth was covered with a white mask, one of the same kind the military had handed out at Maka's village during the Oregon flu epidemic. His black leather gloves, which matched his hair, completed his frightening look. He went to the table and took a good look at the machine. Then he turned to Maka.

"Come here", he said. Maka, not wanting to make it worse on herself, obeyed. Then the man went over to the counter and put on a stethoscope. He pressed the cold stethoscope into her chest. After listening intensively for about a minute he lowered the stethoscope again.

"Turn around", he ordered. Maka obeyed. He pressed the stethoscope into her back and ordered her to breathe normally. After a minute he ordered her to cough, so she coughed.

"Good, now sit down", he said, pointing at the table. Maka sat down, her feet were dangling off the ground. The man went over to the counter and grabbed a small hammer. He hit her on the knee, causing her to involuntarily move her lower leg.

"Open wide", he ordered. Maka opened her mouth as wide as she could. The man looked into her mouth. He grabbed her lower jaw with his hand and moved it around, looking into her mouth from different angles. He then closed her mouth again and went over to the counter. He came back with a syringe. He depressed the plunger a bit, causing some of the clear liquid inside to spill out. Maka wondered what that this liquid was. He then grabbed her right arm with his free hand and stabbed the the syringe into it, fully depressing the plunger. He then threw the syringe in the trash. Going back to the counter, he grabbed another, empty, syringe. He stabbed it into her arm and pulled the plunger out, filling it with Maka's blood. He then put the syringe aside and dragged her over to a scale. He quietly measured her weight, then her height before writing the results into a notebook.

"Leland, transfer this slave to a cell!" He shouted towards the door that said "Merchandize Storage". Leland came in, grabbed Maka and dragged her trough the door.

"Perez, send in the next one!", she heard the man who had examined her yell as the guard led her trough a corridor with 5 cells. The front walls were made of iron bars as thick as her upper arm. On the left side of each cell was a four story bunk bed. It lacked pillows and blankets. Sanitation consisted of a hole in the floor. The cells were completely empty. The slave traders were either out of stock, or they had a separate sale area.


	8. Conversation with Liz

The guard pushed her into the third cell. She laid down in the bottom bunk, glad to finally be able to lie down, even if the bed was extremely hard and uncomfortable. After a while, the captive who looked similar to Miss Thompson was pushed into the cell. Maka got up and went to the back of the cell. The other captive followed her. Maka tried to think of something to say, but this was hardly a situation suitable for a conversation. On the other hand, this captive probably knew a lot, and this might be the only change to talk to her, as they could be sold any time.

"Hello, what's your name?", whispered Maka, not being able to think of anything better to say.

"Elizabeth Thompson", replied Elizabeth quietly and timidly, "you can call me Liz"

"Do you know where we are?" asked Maka.

"New Nevada, probably", answered Liz.

"How do you figure?", asked Maka.

"We were in the town Elko when I was loaded onto the truck, and they didn't seem to have crossed any borders" said Liz.

"Are you sure?", asked Maka.

"Yeah, someone would have investigated the truck", said Liz.

"Do you know how much eleven million New Nevada Dollars are worth?" asked Maka.

"That's enough to buy a slave" said Liz, "why do you ask?"

"When I was captured, the slaver's accountant constantly talked as he examined everyone and also said his estimate out loud", said Maka, "I heard that expensive slaves get treated better than cheap ones"

"According to the ministry of wealth the average yearly salary is a hundred million New Nevada Dollars", said Liz.

"What's a hundred?", asked Maka.

"A number, comes after ninety nine" answered Liz. Maka slumped to the floor as she heard that. She would be quite affordable and easy to replace. If her escape would fail, she could be certain of her future master's ire.

"What happens to runaway slaves if they get caught?", asked Maka quietly and shaking.

"That's up to the owner", said Liz, shrugging her shoulders, "as far as I know, the most common punishment is skinning said slave alive, but crucifixion and slow hanging are not unheard of. If however, the slave murdered the owner, the punishment is to be broken on the wheel"

"What's breaking someone on the wheel?", asked Maka.

"It's a nasty way to leave this world. First, they tie you to a wheel. Then they break your arms and legs. Then they put the wheel on a long pole and you will be eaten alive by birds", said Liz, as if she was talking about the weather.

"You seem to know a lot about this country", said Maka, trying to debunk the grim news Liz had given her.

"I was born in this country", said Liz.

"Then how did you become a slave?", asked Maka.

"How did you become a slave?", asked Liz.

"Slavers razed my village and took everyone they could catch", said Maka.

"I couldn't pay my debts,", said Liz, "so they sold me into slavery to cover the outstanding debts"

"Why would you borrow money if you could not pay it back?", asked Maka.

"I don't want to talk about it" said Liz. Then a guard threw Meme into the cell. She was blindfolded. She barely managed to break her fall.

"Why did they blindfold you?", asked Maka.

"I didn't close my eyes when they dunked me in that foul tasting liquid", said Meme, "the doctor put some drops in my eyes, blindfolded me and said that I would go blind if I took it off"

"I wonder what the hell they use", said Liz.

"Maka, who is that?" asked Meme.

"That's Liz Thompson, Liz, that's Meme Tantane", said Maka.

"Do you know Patty Thompson?" asked Meme.

"You know my sister? Where is she?" asked Liz excitedly but quietly.

"She was one of the slavers. She was put on a quadruple shift of guard duty and got fifty lashes for wasting water" said Maka.

"Is she okay?", asked Liz.

"I hope not, I hope that skank's dead", said Meme, undoubtedly remembering the abuse she had suffered at Patty's hands.

"Take that back!", yelled Liz, putting her hands around Meme's throat. Meme tried to free herself from Liz's chokehold. Liz slammed Meme's head backwards into the iron bars of the door. Meme stopped struggling. A guard came running. He had his gun drawn.

"Get down!", the guard yelled. Maka dropped down to the floor. Liz let go of Meme. Meme collapsed onto the floor. Liz dropped down to the floor. The guard, whose name Maka remembered to be Leland, looked at the unconscious Meme.

"Dr. Howell, there's been a fight!", called Leland.

"Coming!", replied Dr. Howell. Maka recognized him as the man who had examined her earlier. He was dragging Susanne along with him. He pushed Susanne over to the guard.

"Hold that for me", he ordered. Then he entered the cell, closing the door behind him. He knelt down and checked Meme's breath and pulse. He then lifted her up by her slave collar, before he slapped her with the back of his hand. Meme's body twitched.

"I'm blind!" yelled Meme in distraught, her hands shooting up to her eyes.

"No, just blindfolded, remember?", said Dr. Howell. Turning to Leland, he ordered: "See to it that the one responsible for this is punished", as he left the cell and went back to his workplace.

"Yes, sir!", replied Leland enthusiastically. He pushed Susanne into the cell, grabbed Liz and told her to come with him.

"Please, show some mercy! It won't happen again!", begged Liz frantically as Leland dragged her away, whistling happily. Looking after them, Maka couldn't help but wonder what ingenious forms of torture they had for disobedient slaves. She was just glad she wouldn't find out first hand.


	9. Shelf warmers

Lying down on the lowest bunk, she thought about her future. She knew that if she ever wanted to taste freedom again, she would have to escape. But if her escape failed, she would be lucky if they gave her a swift death. There would be no second change, she either got away the first time or she would be skinned alive. She didn't want to think about, but the more she tried to get her mind of it, the more the image of herself, screaming in pain as a black hooded executioner pulled the skin of her young body, gained presence in her mind. Maybe escape was not worth the risk after all? No, she could not give up just because the stakes were high. Besides, the risks of not escaping may be even worse. After all, her owner would be allowed to do anything he wanted to her. So what if he one day decides to hang her, or to practice some creative dentistry, or to rape her? There was no safe option. No, she had to think about something positive.

So she decided to think about why she thought she could escape. About the advantages she had. To begin with, she was in physically good shape. While she wasn't as strong as her late father, which was a good thing, because then she would probably be sold to a mine or a fuel farm, she could still run for some time without tiring out. She also had a good knowledge of the plants that grew around her village and most importantly, which ones were edible and which were poisonous. Thinking of her home, which had been burned to the ground, she saw what her biggest advantage was. She was still a citizen of the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming. That meant she had somewhere to run, unlike Liz, who was now practically stateless. But what if West Wyoming lost the war. Then she would be stateless as well. No, her homeland's army would of course be victorious. There was no way these traitorous New Confederates could win against a real enemy like the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming and it's glorious army under the glorious leadership of it's president, Charles Anderson Ligua.

Of course, if she wanted to escape, she would have to figure out where she was, so that she wouldn't end up running towards the Tyrannis of California or some other country that wasn't her homeland. Then she needed food and water, so she wouldn't have to waste time looking for these things when her future owner's thugs were after her. She couldn't help but to feel that she was forgetting a crucial step. That's when her slave collar started to feel tighter. As she adjusted it, she wondered how she could get it off. A bolt cutter would probably cut it.

Three more captives entered the cell at once. With another captive, who was put into the cell while Maka was thinking about her escape, there where seven captives in the cell now. Maka sighed, there would be two people sleeping in each of these bunks, which were barely large enough for one person. But she was able to sleep while chained in one of the slavers' trucks, so this should work, too.

Maka decided to take a better look at her new cellmates, so she crawled out from the bunk to take a look at them. One was an elderly woman, with a wrinkled face and a hunched back. Maka wondered whether a slave at this age still had any value. Maybe she was highly educated, but that was unlikely. Women almost never get any sort of education. Maka was lucky she was able to read, most girls her age were completely unable to read at all. But maybe this woman came from somewhere where it was more common for women to be educated. Maka actually wished she could have attended school longer, but she also knew that she should already be grateful for the two years of schooling she had received.

The second captive was a rather young girl. She had a long scar across the right side of her face, straight through her eye. She also wasn't handcuffed, since her right hand was missing. The third one was a middle aged woman, who was the only one of the three who seemed to be able bodied.

"What happened to your hand?", asked Maka.

"Got caught in machinery", said the one handed girl.

"You look like you've been in here for quite some time", said Maka, pointing at her stump.

"Nobody wants a crippled slave", said the one handed girl.

"If they can't sell you, why don't they just let you go?", asked Maka.

"Not so loud. Don't give them any ideas", said the one handed girl, worriedly.

"Why don't you want to be free?" asked Maka, amazed that anybody would rather be a slave than free.

"It's quite simple", said the elderly captive, "If Lefty was free, she would starve to death. Here she gets at least two meals a day. They are also more likely to turn her into glue than to let her go"

"There's only seven people in this cell. I get a bunk for myself!", shouted the middle aged woman.

"No, Deafty, Ol'Bones needs it more than you" said Lefty, pointing at the elderly captive.

"She's right, old people can't sleep as well", said Susanne, "you need to respect your elders"

"Only seven?", asked Meme, "Where's Liz?"

"She's being punished for assaulting you, remember, Airhead" said Susanne.

"She will probably be back soon, so don't get your hopes up", said Maka.

"Actually, the punishment always lasts at least all night long, she won't be back tonight. Heck, they will probably continue punishing her after the market closes tomorrow", said Leftie.

"What's the punishment?", asked Maka with a shaky voice.

"You don't want to know", said Deafty, "just trust me on this. You don't want to know"

"If you're deaf, how can you understand what we say?", asked Maka.

"Lip reading"replied Deafty.

"Quiet down there!", yelled a guard, banging his club on the bars. The captives knew better than to challenge an order. Lefty informed Deafty by forming words with her lips without actually making any noise. Maka went over to another captive from her village, who was curled up into a heap and crying. Maka would have tried to comfort her, but she was too preoccupied with her own situation to do anything. She decided that she should talk to Lefty about her escape plan. But first she would have to wait, the guards would change shifts eventually. So she sat down in the back of the cell and waited.


	10. Conversation with Lefty

A few minutes later, they were given their dinner. It consisted of a loaf of bread, a canteen of water and a pot of soup. They were also given eight soup bowls. Maka didn't expect them to be given something warm to eat, and looking at her former neighbors, they didn't either. They quickly divided the bread and poured the soup in the bowls. It was a simple, watery soup, but Maka was still determined to enjoy her first warm meal in twelve days. She smelled the soup. It smelled like grain. She took a small sip of it. It tasted vaguely like grain, but more like water. It was very thin, not as thin as tea, but she could imagine that the chef's orders were something along the lines of "make this soup as thin as possible". Maka ate the soup slowly and carefully, she didn't want to spill any of it. After she had eaten the soup, she ate her bread and took a big drink from the canteen, since she hadn't had anything to drink all day. After a while, a guard collected the dishes and the pots that used to be filled with soup.

After the guards had changed shifts, Maka went to over to Lefty, who was lying on the third bunk from the bottom and let her hand dangle from the side.

"Can I talk to you about something?", she asked quietly after making sure that no guard was watching.

"About what?", asked Lefty quietly, having noted Maka's tone.

"Escape", whispered Maka.

"That's a dangerous thing to talk about",whispered Lefty, "to dangerous to talk about it now"

"Then when should we talk about it?", asked Maka.

"Get into the same bunk as me at light out", whispered Lefty, "the guards get inattentive once the lights are out" With that, Maka moved to the other side of the cell and waited patiently for the guards to extinct the lights. A few minutes later one of the guards got the order to extinct the lights. Maka and the other captives quickly went to lay down in the bunks. A short while after Maka had laid down next to Lefty, the lights went out instantly. They must be using these light spheres the guard in the truck used.

"Can we talk now?", asked Maka quietly.

"Not yet", whispered Lefty. And so they waited. The guards where walking up and down, looking into the cells with their gaslights as they did so. Maka started to count the how often they went by the cell. After a time they started to come by their cell less frequently. Then somebody started to snore. After a while, the guards seemed to have stopped patrolling at all.

"So what do you want to know?", asked Lefty.

"What do you think is the best way to escape?", asked Maka.

"Well, escape from this place is near impossible", said Lefty, "so the best bet would be to wait until someone buys you. You'd have to make preparations, of course. Do you have any idea where you will run to?"

"I'll try to get back to my homeland, West Wyoming", said Maka.

"How will you cross the border?", asked Lefty, "They won't let a slave cross the border"

"If I get rid of this collar, they won't know that I'm a runaway slave", said Maka, fingering her collar.

"These collars are an ingenious invention. They are easy to damage, but hard to actually break.", said Lefty.

"How hard?", asked Maka.

"Well, I once heard about a slave who tried to cut it with a bolt cutter, didn't work. He still tried to run away, but that damaged collar instantly marked him as a runaway", said Lefty.

"What happened to him?", asked Maka.

"He was caught and returned to his master, who did something so nasty to him, that his replacement, who was forced to watch it, ended up completely traumatized", said Lefty.

"Where have you heard that?", asked Maka skeptically.

"Some guards where talking about it", said Lefty, "could be exaggerated, though"

"So what should I do in your opinion?", asked Maka.

"Escape is a losing sport/ Your life's not worth attempted flight", sang Lefty.

"I don't want to resign myself to a live of slavery", said Maka.

"If I were you, I would be worried about who I get sold to", said Lefty.

"Isn't that completely out of my hands?", asked Maka.

"Yeah, but there are two people, Screwhead and the symmetrical bald man, if one of them buys you, make a run for it the first change you get", said Lefty.

"Why, what makes them worse than everybody else?", asked Maka.

"Each of them buys a new slave roughly once a week", said Lefty.

"Wouldn't it be better to get sold to someone who owns a lot of slaves?", asked Maka, "They wouldn't notice it that easily if one is missing"

"People who have a lot of slaves typically buy them in a bunch", said Lefty.

"Then why do they buy that many slaves?", asked Maka.

"I think they kill them", said Lefty. With that, Lefty had confirmed one of Maka's biggest fears, there were actually people who bought slaves just to torture them to death.

"How do I recognize them?", asked Maka, more worried than ever.

"Screwhead has a screw in his head and is followed around by some redheaded guy. He is also covered in stitches. The symmetrical bald man is bald and always dresses symmetrically", explained Lefty.

"Why does he has a screw in his head?", asked Maka.

"Nobody knows. He occasionally turns it. My theory is that his brain has to be wound up regularly", said Lefty.

"You mentioned the redhead who follows him around, what's about him?", asked Maka.

"Nobody knows, my theory is that he is some kind of disciple or something like that", said Lefty, "and speaking of Screwhead, I overheard him earlier today how he asked one of the salesmen if they had a grigori."

"What's a grigori?", asked Maka.

"The salesman didn't know that, either", said Lefty, "But he told him that he should check back tomorrow"

"How high is the average yearly salary in this country?", asked Maka.

"As far as I know a hundred million Dollars a year", said Lefty, "Why do you ask?"

"Liz told me the same thing", said Maka.

"Who's that?", asked Lefty.

"She's the one being punished. But if the average wage is ten times higher than the price for a slave, then why does anyone hire anyone?", asked Maka.

"As far as I know, most people earn far below the average wage. I once overheard the guards talking about their salaries. They apparently make around two and a half million dollars a year." explained Lefty, "the doctor then jokingly said that this country has a nightmarish gini-coefficent"

"gini-what?", asked Maka.

"That's exactly what the guards said. Howell then went on to explain how it measures something called income disparity", said Lefty.

"Sounds boring", said Maka.

"The guards thought so as well. Howell went back to his lab, cursing the guards under his breath", said Lefty

"I don't pay you guy's to sit on your lazy asses and play cards!", shouted an angry voice, "Get back to work you useless idiots!" Maka and Lefty immediately went silent. They could hear phrases like "sorry, sir", and "won't happen again, sir". The guards resumed their patrol. Maka decided that the best course of action would be go to sleep, as the guards would not stop patrolling anytime soon. Judging by Lefty's breath rate, she was already asleep, and soon Maka was as well.


	11. For sale

"Wake up!", yelled a guard. Maka carefully climbed out of the bunk, followed by Lefty. She had slept better than in the slaver's truck, thought she was still very tired. The guards proceeded to give them their breakfast, which consisted of a loaf of bread and a canteen of water. After they had eaten the canteens where collected. Then they let them out of the cells and lined them up. Maka was standing between Lefty and Meme. A guard with a clipboard went down the line and checked if no one had escaped.

"...Deafty's here, Slinkey's been sold, Lefty is still here", the guard said while checking his list, "Tiny-tits is new, Mole is new, God, where do we keep getting these cripples from?", he asked his god before he continued to give Susanne an insulting nickname.

"... Number 7496EWY3834E2 is missing!", yelled the guard, turning to the captives he asked "Any of you know something about it?", while threateningly waving his club in a captive's face.

"There's one slave being punished, sure it's not her?", asked Dr. Howell, who had just entered the room, coming from his office. The guard looked a bit perplexed, before he went to check. Dr. Howell then took off Meme's blindfold. Meme winced in pain, her eyes were bloodshot and swollen. Maka could not even imagine how much it would hurt to get that liquid in one's eyes.

"Found Blandie" said the guard who had conducted the count, while dragging Liz along. She looked awful. Not hurt, but still broken. Her body was weak, as if she could not keep herself on her feet, as if she just wanted to fall to the floor and sleep. Whatever the punishment was, it went all night long, and, if she didn't get sold today, it would continue.

"Oh, so she's not blind after all", said the guard to himself, while dragging Liz along, "just mind-boggingly stupid, I'll call her Airhead". After he had positioned Liz at the end of the line, another guard got a hose and hosed each of the captives down with cold water. Maka wondered where the water came from, and why it came in such a fierce stream. Maybe they had a water tank somewhere, probably on the roof. While Maka was trying to figure out how the slave traders generated water pressure, the guards led them into what appeared to be their sale area.

It consisted of a large, well lit room with three stages, one at the back of the wall, one on the far side of the room, apparently right in front the main entrance, and one in between. On each stage where eight posts in a row with chains hanging of them. The floor was made of hard wood, light and dark tones interchanging, forming a checkerboard. There was a couch and a small coffee table on left side of the room. The couch seemed to be made of leather, Maka had often seen leather, but never a piece of furniture made of leather. There was a bowl of apples on the table.

The guards then chained each of them to a post on the stages. Two to each post on the first two stages from the main entrance, one per post on the last stage, forming five rows of eight captives each. Maka was in the third row from the main entrance. She looked around, and saw that the slave traders apparently sorted them by their expected price. Liz was in the second row, Meme in the fourth, right behind Maka. Deafty, Ol'Bones and Lefty were in the last row, they had sings around their neck saying c-h-e-a-[?] 25% o-[?]-[?], however, Ol'Bones' sign said 50% and Lefty's 75%. Among the other five in the last row were a midget, a woman with only one eye, an elderly man, a man whose skin was partially burnt off and another one who actually looked normal. They all had similar sings around their necks, though none of these had a number as high as Lefty's.

After a while, the slaver's customers started to come. Most of them were just browsing, not paying much attention to the individual slaves. Some where talking to the salesmen, probably asking for advice. Some where in the back, treating it as a free freakshow. Maka felt humiliated, like cattle, with all these people looking at her naked body, somehow even more than before, when the slavers' appraiser looked at her. She couldn't explain why. Maybe it was because at that time, she was still in shock. Maybe it was because the appraisers and later Dr. Howell treated it with a bit of professionalism, while most of these people were just browsing absentmindedly.

The first person who seemed to actually consider buying her was a elderly lady, who spent a long amount of time eyeing her, which made Maka feel uncomfortable. She wore a dress similar to the one the wife of her village's major, Bettina, used to wear. Maka wondered where Bettina was now. The elderly lady was now talking to a salesman. It seemed to be a relatively neutral discussion, with the lady asking a few questions and the salesman answering. Maka tried to understand follow the conversation, but they were walking away from her so that she couldn't understand them. The Salesman finished the conversation by pointing towards the last row of captives, which probably meant that the lady didn't have enough money to afford Maka.


	12. Sold

The second person who showed interest in her was a man dressed in a black suit and wearing a black, wide rimmed hat and black leather gloves. She had actually seen him walking through the lines looking at every captive. He then picked up a folder that was chained to the stage. After reading the single page of paper inside, front and back, he called for a salesman.

"How much does this one cost?", he asked.

"Fifteen million Dollars" answered the salesman, "Mr. ..."

"Dr. Evans. You sure she's worth that much? Looks more like five million to me." said Dr. Evans.

"Be assured that she is worth every mille. But I'm willing to give her to you for thirteen million. If you want a slave for five million, you should look there in the back, Dr. Evans", said the salesman, pointing towards the back.

"That's quite much for an uneducated slave. I'll offer ten million", said Dr. Evans.

"As you can see, she is quite healthy, properly nourished, with a good dental record", said the salesman.

"Why would I care about her teeth?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It's a good way to tell the slave's age, and it's impossible to fake", said the salesman.

"Then let's see those teeth", said Dr. Evans.

"Certainly", said the salesman. He climbed up on the stage, forced Maka down to her knees and forced her mouth open for Dr. Evans to look at. Now Maka could see that he wore black toned glasses. Maka wondered why would wear those ugly glasses. He didn't seem to be blind, but what other reason was there to wear black glasses?

"You're right, she does have a good teeth. But I doubt she's worth thirteen million. Ten and a half", said Dr. Evans.

"Eleven million", said the Salesman, who let go of Maka, so that she could stand up.

"Okay, I can agree to that", said Dr. Evans, "do you take checks?"

"Only from class A citizens.", answered the salesman. Dr. Evans took out his wallet and showed the salesman a card. After putting the card away, he took a small booklet from a pocket of his suit.

"There's some paperwork to fill out", said the salesman, "why don't we go into my office?" As they both walked away the Salesman gave a guard the order to prepare the doctor's purchase for pick up. The guard removed Maka's chain from the post and dragged her through a door into the room with the foul smelling liquid which had almost blinded Meme. The guard hosed her down with cold water. He then dragged her over to the pool with the liquid.

"You better close your eyes for this", said the guard. Maka wondered how dumb he thought she was. As the guard had recommended, she closed her eyes when he submerged her. Somehow, it hurt even worse than before, but that just might be her imagination.

"Hands!", he ordered after pulling her out of the liquid. Maka assumed he wanted her to present her hands, so that was what she did. The guard then uncuffed her and removed the chain from the collar before he turned around to open a closet. Maka wondered whether she could overpower him and make a run for it. It couldn't be too hard, after all she grew up on a farm, while she wasn't as strong as some other people in her village, who were right now probably toiling in a mine or a fuel farm, she was still strong. But what should she do after she had overpowered the guard? Running through the main room would be suicide, but it also was the only way out that she could think of. But wait, there was another exit, the one were she entered yesterday, and it couldn't be far. She would probably have a real chance of escaping from the slave market that way. Then she would just have to play her cards ri...

"Put this on", ordered the guard as he handed her some clothes. Maka sighed and put on the clothes. Maybe it was for the better that her escape plan was ruined, she probably wouldn't have made it far. She looked at the clothes she had just put on. She wore a long greyish brown plain dress, with long sleeves, and a pair of very simple sandals. Even though she she couldn't see it, her slave collar was probably clearly visible.

"Hands!", ordered the guard. Maka presented her hands and he cuffed them again. Then attached the chain once again, so he could chain her to a hook on the wall, which he did. Then he left the room. Maka wondered how this Dr. Evans would treat her. The last two doctors she met, Eisenberg and Howell, were bad people, so why should Dr. Evans be any better? And why was he dressing like someone who didn't want to be recognized, with these black glasses. On the other hand, he did seem to carry an accurate identification. Maybe these black glasses were merely a fashion choice. Were they even real Doctors? Dr. Eisenberg doesn't work in a medical field. But what if he used to work in one? And what was this language his assistant had to translate from?. Maybe Dr. Eisenberg wasn't always a slaver. But if that was true, what was his job before he became a slaver? How much does a slaver make? Was Dr. Eisenberg's income in any way relevant to her current situation?

"Present the collar!", ordered the guard. Maka looked at him. What did he mean with present the collar? Wasn't it already clearly visible? The guard grabbed her chin and pushed it upwards.

"Just a bit of friendly advice. When someone tells you to present your collar, push your head back so that even somebody who is taller than you can easily read the label comfortably", explained the guard, holding up a small metal plate he added: "This label contains your registration number, your master's name and his address. So don't even think about running away". He then removed the old label from her collar and put the label he just brought in it's place.

"Oh, and you have to do everything your master tells you to, but you probably already knew that. You also have to call him master. The same applies to any family members of his", the guard continued to explain.

"Why are you telling me all of this?", asked Maka, she wondered why he gave her useful information. The guard responded by slapping her across the face.

"First of all, you are to address free people with sir or madam. Secondly, do not question anything, thirdly, only speak when you're spoken to", the guard said as Maka rubbed her cheek. The guard detached the chain from the wall and dragged Maka back trough the sales area into the salesman's office. Dr. Evans and the trader were idly chatting, apparently having filled out all the paperwork.

"Here you go, sir", said the guard, as he handed over Maka's chain to Dr. Evans.

"Thanks", said Dr. Evans, turning to Maka he ordered, "Present the collar!".

"Yes, master", said Maka as she obeyed. He then proceeded to read the label.

"Why is the registration number 13 characters long?", he asked the salesman, "My car's license plate only has 6 characters"

"I don't know, either", responded the salesman with a shrug.


	13. To Dr Evan's home

"Well, I should get going" said Dr. Evans, as he grabbed a folder and a dark gray bag. He then handed the bag to Maka and ordered her to carry it. Dr. Evans then dragged Maka behind him out through the sales area into some sort of anteroom. There he went up to a window next to a sign. The sign had a stricken gun on it and the writing said "n-o-[?]-...

"Here you go, sir" said the guard behind the window. He had handed Dr. Evans a pistol and a brown trench coat. Dr. Evans put the gun into his suit and then he put on his trench coat. Maka knew that a gun would be useful on her escape, if only she could steal it. She'd have to pay attention to where he put it. After he had taken all his belongings, he made his way to the door. Maka didn't follow him immediately, resulting in the chain getting pulled taunt.

"If I have to pull this chain taut once again, you will be punished", said Dr. Evans, eying Maka with a stern expression.

"I'm sorry, master. It won't happen again, master", said Maka in order to appease him. Making him angry wouldn't help at all.

"I sure hope so", Dr. Evans said before he continued walking. Maka followed him, walking a few steps behind him, but taking care that there was enough slack on the chain. As he walked her through the town, presumably to his house, Maka thought once again about her situation and how she would escape. How would Dr. Evans treat her? Well, he was a doctor, maybe he needed test subjects for a new medical procedure. Would it be painful? No, she had to think positive. He matched neither the description of Srewhead or the symmetrical bald man. In fact, his hair was white. And there was no redhead in sight anywhere. But wait, he had white hair, he must be quite old. It couldn't be long 'til he shuffled of the mortal coil. What would happen to her if she outlived her owner? She would probably be inherited by some relatives of his. How would they treat her? But what would happen if he had no heirs? Maybe then they would let her go. Depending on Dr. Evans family situation and local inheritance laws, the best strategy might be to simply wait for him to kick the bucket. The only problem was that, while she would probably outlive him, he might survive for another ten or twenty years. His face also looked like he knew some amazing cosmetics. And was waiting to be set free not the same as resignation? Maybe there's even a law against setting slaves free. No, that would be absurd. But what did she know about this country? Well, she knew that it was called "New Nevada", that slavery was legal, but she couldn't name a country where it wasn't, that one could get sold into slavery by getting into debt, that the average income was a hundred million New Nevada Dollars and that the "income disparity", whatever that is, is nightmarish. But none of that information would aid her escape.

How should she escape? She had to plan her escape thoroughly, or she would get caught and skinned alive, or hanged, or crucified. And even if he choose to not kill her, she would not probably not get a second change. First she had to figure out in which direction West Wyoming was, there was no other place for her to go. Then she would have to pack to provisions, probably for at least one or two weeks. And she would obviously have to hide her preparations. But there nothing she could do now, she would have to wait and see.

So she started to look around. Dr. Evans was leading her through a residential area. The houses looked old, well maintained and each surrounded by a large lawn with a high fence around them. Some of the gardens were very fancy, while others were simple, yet tidy and well maintained. The houses themselves were all different, but even the smallest of them were bigger than the largest houses in Maka's village. After a while her owner arrived at a house. It was one of the simpler ones. The yard had a wrought iron fence and the lawn was sprawling with weed. The backyard was bordered by a forest. That would probably be useful for her escape.

Her owner went up to the entrance and started searching his pockets, presumably for his keys. On the door frame was a sign. It said "D-r.-S-o-u-l-E-[?]-a-n-s-A-t-t-o-r-n-e-[?]-a-t...". Before she could finish reading the sign, her owner had led her inside. It was stylish, bright anteroom. There was a coat rack on the left side. The walls were decorated with various framed newspaper clippings, some of them containing her owner's name in the headline.

Dr. Evans pulled a small key from a pocket of his suit. After ordering her to present her hands, he removed her handcuffs and put them in the bag he made her carry, which he took. Then he removed the chain from her collar and also put it into the bag. He handed her his coat and ordered her to hang it on the coat hanger.


	14. Electric Stove

"If you turn out to be a bad investment, I'll sell you to a fuel farm", he threatened. Maka was aware that he was serious, but at least his threat meant that he bought her to work for him and not so he could cut her up. He then pulled a golden disk out of a pocket of his suit, it appeared to be connected to his suit by a small golden chain, and opened it.

"Eleven o'clock", he said, "follow me"

"Yes master", answered Maka as she followed him through his dining room, into what appeared to be his kitchen.

"Make me lunch", he ordered. Maka looked around, the kitchen contained many objects she did not recognize. There was one thing which seemed to be a stove, but it didn't seem to have anything where one could light a fire. So where would the heat needed to cook come from? Under a window was a strange contraption with two knobs and some kind of metal bowl underneath, which was build into the counter. There also was a strange machine standing an a counter in the corner, it consisted of a cylindrical base. On a part of the base was a carafe, but behind the carafe a wall that went up to support the upper part of the machine. Above the carafe was another cylinder, roughly as large as the base. She also saw less exotic tools, such as a knife block and some cutting boards. She noted that her owner seemed to be becoming impatient, as he was starting to tap his foot on the floor, she had to say something.

"What exactly do you want to eat, master?", asked Maka, hoping that this question wouldn't make him angry.

"A soup will be fine", he answered after a few seconds before leaving the room. Maka wondered what she should do. Escaping now would be very difficult and probably suicide. She would have to obey her owner for now. She wondered how she should prepare his soup. While she could cook quite well, most of the things in his kitchen were unfamiliar to her. He also hadn't specified what kind of soup he wanted. She would just have to wing it and hope for the best.

She started by looking for a suitable pot to prepare the soup in. She opened a cupboard. It was filled with cups. She opened another cupboard and it was filled with glasses. Expensive glasses. She could easily see that these glasses were of much higher quality than the ones her family used to have. Her owner must be a wealthy man. The next cupboard contained plates and bowls, apparently made from fine ceramic. The cupboard over the stove contained many different glass jars, apparently all filled with spices. The last cupboard was locked. After looking in every cupboard, she started to look into the counters. The first one was filled with several baking pans. Some looked like they were used to bake bread. Other seemed to be used for the production of some sort of circular ripped bread with a hole in the middle. The next counter contained exclusively large rectangular pans. In the next counter she finally found several pots and frying pans. She took a medium sized pot and put it on the counter.

She now had to figure out how the stove worked. It was made of an unidentified white material with four differently sized black plates on top. On the side facing her were six different knobs, arranged on what appeared to be some sort of control panel. The first four had numbers from zero to nine written on the side. All knobs were set so that the zero aligned with a short red stripe above each knob on the control panel. There was a pictogramm next to each of the knobs, showing a cross with a circle in a different corner each. The other two knobs were set apart from their four brethren. The right one contained various numbers, starting at a hundred. It was, however, set to a vertical dash. The left one on the other hand contained several pictograms, mostly depicting a several lines in different drawing styles. Below the control panel was some kind of door, with a large handle. She grabbed the handle and opened it. It seemed to be some kind of stove. Inside was some sort of rack. It occurred to Maka that this rack would be ideal to put some of these rectangular pans on. She then closed the door and turned her attention back to the top of the stove. She only had to figure out how to operate it. But was it really such a good idea to just start experimenting with her masters stove? What if she started a fire? But she didn't really have much of a choice here. If she didn't figure this out, he would get angry and sell her to a fuel farm. Maybe she could just ask him how to operate the stove? But then he would also get angry because she would have wasted his time. There was no other way than to experiment with the stove. She decided to turn one of the four knobs. Nothing happened. Looking at the pictogram next to the knob, she determinded that it should affect the far right plate. If this knob affected this plate, it should heat up. She slowly put her hand over the plate. She could feel how it had warmed up. She turned the stove off again. So each of these first four knobs operated a plate. The number probably indicated how hot the plate would become.


	15. An indoor well

She now had to find the ingredients to use. She started to look into the rest of the counters. One contained a garbage can, another some sponges and rags and colorful liquids in glass bottles, but none of them contained something she would consider edible. Then she turned her attention to a some sort of closet. It contained food, mostly vegetables. And the inside was colder than the outside, which, if she thought about it, was really neat. The cooled food would stay fresh longer, just like an animal corpse in the snow wouldn't rot. There were carrots, some cylindrical yellow fruit, red and green variants of said fruit, leek, celery, a green cube-shaped fruit, butter on a small tablet covered with glass, several things that were wrapped in paper and several bottles filled with different colored liquid, among them a thick red liquid and clear yellow liquid. The yellow liquid seemed to be some kind of oil, but it was much clearer than any edible oil she had ever seen. She took the carrots, the leek and the celery out of the closet and put them on the counter.

She now had most things necessary to cook a soup, but one key ingredient was still missing: Water. There was no way to cook a good soup, or any soup, without water. As there was apparently no water in the kitchen, she decided to look in the room next to the cold closet. It appeared to be her owner's pantry. There were a multitude of metal cylinders with different labels on them, a bunch of non spoiling ingredients, such as pasta, onions and potatoes. On the lowest shelf, she saw expensive looking glass bottles filled with a clear colorless liquid, probably white wine. She took some of the onions and the potatoes and put them on the counter, they would add nicely to the soup. But where was the water? Maybe her owner had deliberately chosen this task to be impossible, to then punish her when she failed to cook a soup. But if he wanted to beat her, why would he bother coming up with an excuse to do so. There had to be water somewhere. Probably someplace where it was obvious to him.

Pacing up and down the kitchen, she noted that in the metal bowl under the strange contraption where some dirty dishes. She would probably have to clean them later. But there was also some water in these dishes. There had to be water close to the contraption. At least that was where she would store water after she had fetched it from the well. But she had already looked in all the counters there was no water anywhere. That's when she noticed that she had seen a similar contraption somewhere before. The guards at the slave market had hosed them down, and the hose was connected to a similar contraption. There were some differences, though. Then one the guards used seemed to have only one knob. This one had two. Before they were hosed down, the guard had turned the knob on his contraption. She turned the knob on her owner's contraption. Water started flowing out of it. An indoor well. And the water seemed to be clean, cooking would remove any bacteria. How much water did this well contain? She quickly turned it off again, she would probably make her owner angry if she used up all of his water.

She started preparing the soup. She first cut the vegetables up with a knife before putting them into a pot. Then she peeled and diced the onion and the potato and put them into the same pot. She added a small amount of water, turned on the heat and began steaming the ingredients. Then she realized that she would need a wooden spoon to stir the soup. She started looking into the drawers of the counters. One contained towels, several others cooking tools in another cutlery. All of highest quality, she wouldn't be surprised if they were made from silver. While admiring a spoon, she remembered that she had something on the stove. She quickly filled another pot with water and poured it into the one she was steaming the ingredients in. She let it come to boil and stirred it regularly. This soup had to be perfect or her owner would get angry, and she had no idea what he would do if he was displeased with her. Well, he had threatened to sell her to a fuel farm. But maybe he would only whip her if she screwed up his meal, like the slavers did when she talked. Or he might get creative. It would probably be better if she didn't find out. He might take some pliers and yank her fingernails out. Or maybe her toenails. Or her teeth. No, she had to stop thinking so negatively.

She took a taste of the stock. It needed some salt, so she added some. She continued stirring and taste testing the stock. Once she was satisfied, she took the sieve and filtered the soup trough it into another pot. After she put said pot back on the stove, she turned the heat down a bit and let the soup simmer. What should she do with the refuse she had just filtered out? She should probably throw it away, but maybe it would be better to eat it, in case her owner wanted to let her to starve. On the other hand, she had prepared much more soup than one person could possibly eat, there would probably be something left. Maybe he would let her eat that. So she threw the refuse into the thrash. It was at this time that she should probably add something to the soup, or it would just consist of the stock. She remembered seing some noodles in her owner's pantry. She added these noodles to the soup. Then she cut up a second onion and added it to the soup,too . After a short while she tasted the soup again and found that she wouldn't be able to improve it. So she poured it into a soup bowl. Now she could serve the soup to her owner.


	16. Soul eats soup

But her owner hadn't specified where he wanted to eat his soup. Probably in his dining room, that's what it was there for, after all. She carried the soup bowl into the dining room. The first thing that she had noticed about this room was that there wasn't a picture Charles Anderson Ligua hanging on the wall. Of course, it would have been more conspicuous if there was one, as they weren't in West Wyoming. Her owner was sitting at his table whistling a melody while looking at a paper with lines and dots, instead of words. He seemed to be completely immersed in it. He looked up from the paper, put it aside, face down, took out that golden disk, which appeared to be a clock, opened it, and looked at it.

"One and a half hours", he said, his voice sounding slightly agitated, "the acceptable time to prepare a soup is ten, maybe twenty minutes. Why did that take so long?" Maka was terrified, he would whip her. Or rip her fingernails out. Or sell her to a fuel farm. But how should she prepare a soup in only twenty minutes? That would only be possible if she already had a stock on hand. She had to say something, or her owner would get even angrier than he already was. But what?

"I'm sorry, master", she said timidly, "but I couldn't prepare your soup more quickly"

"Why not?" he asked, sounding even more agitated.

"Your kitchen was unfamiliar to me, master", explained Maka.

"I'll decide on your punishment later. Now give me that soup and bring me a spoon", he said.

"Yes, master", said Maka, afraid of making it worse for herself. She put the soup down in front of him and fetched him spoon. As she watched him eat she wondered what he would do to her. He could do anything to her he could think of, anything he wanted. Maybe he would even enjoy hurting her. He probably would. After all, he was going to punish her for failing to prepare a soup in one fourth the time it takes to prepare a soup.

"This soup is swell. Very swell", he said while eating the soup. Maybe she could convince him that a good soup simply takes that long to prepare.

"Say, how did you make this soup so good?", he asked.

"I used leek, celery, carrots, potatoes and onions to prepare the stock, then I...", she said.

"Wait, you made the soup from scratch?", her owner interrupted.

"I'm sorry, master. Should I have prepared it differently?", asked Maka, hoping to somehow avoid her punishment.

"Well, there is canned soup in my pantry. It would only have to be warmed up", he explained. So he didn't actually expect her to prepare a soup from scratch. But he still hadn't said that he wasn't going to beat her. Or whatever else he would come up with.

"I'm sorry, master. I didn't know", she said, thinking quickly, she added, "it won't happen again". Maybe he wouldn't beat her. He didn't answer. Instead he just finished eating his soup. After he had finished, he put his spoon into the bowl and pushed it away from him.

"Clean the dishes and tell me once you're done", he ordered.

"Yes, master", she said, thinking of the leftover soup, she added: "What should I do with the leftover soup?". After she had asked this, it occurred to her that she had just questioned an order. He would certainly beat her black and blue now.

"You can have a bowl. Then trow out the leftovers", he said. Maka wondered why he wasn't mad. Maybe he thought the question was justified. Then it occurred to her that she already questioned an order when she asked him what he wanted to eat. Maybe questions related to her orders were tolerated. Maybe he just hadn't realized that she had questioned an order. She should say something before he gets inpatient.

"Yes, master", she said.

"Before I forget, the dish soap is in the counter under the sink, leftmost bottle, clear liquid", he said before he turned to leave the room. She thanked him for the information, grabbed the bowl and went into the kitchen. She decided to eat the entire pot of soup, because her owner would never figure out how much she ate and how much she threw out, and it's just such a terrible sin to waste food. She truly enjoyed the soup, first decent meal in weeks. After she had finished the soup she realized that she shouldn't dawdle, or her owner would get angry. He had said that the dish soap is in the counter under the sink. What's a sink? There was only one counter in which there were bottles. The one under the well. So this indoor well was called a sink. She took the bottle that matched her owner's description and read the label. It said "D-i-s-h-s-o-a-[?]". So this was some kind of liquid soap specifically for washing dishes. So she washed the dishes, taking care to use the dish soap sparingly, dried them off and put them away.

After she had finished cleaning the dishes, she went to tell her owner. However, he wasn't in his dining room. Not really out of the ordinary, considering that he has two functioning legs. But where was he? Maybe she should just call him. But would that get her in trouble? Then she heard a piano playing. It was the same melody he had whistled earlier. Maybe he was playing this piano. She followed the music. She went into a large and luxuriously equipped living room. There were several paintings on the wall, portraying large beautiful landscapes. Two couches and a large armchair, all made from leather arranged around a big stone table with a polished surface. She didn't even know that stone could be polished. This arrangement faced a fireplace. To the left of the fireplace was a bookshelf. On the right was a large piano, on which her owner played a melody. She should probably wait until he was finished, he didn't look like he wanted to be interrupted, and she enjoyed the music quite a bit.


	17. Maka's Duties

"I've cleaned the dishes like you wanted, master", said Maka after he had stopped playing. She wondered what he would do now. He quietly took out his golden clock and looked at the time.

"Good. What's your name, by the way?", he asked.

"It's Maka...", she said.

"Swell name", he interrupted, "I'm going to explain you your duties now. Pay attention, I won't repeat myself. I want breakfast on the table by seven o'clock on weekdays, eight o'clock on weekends. Lunch at twelve o'clock and dinner at six o'clock. You can eat in the kitchen once I have finished eating. Understood so far?".

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"You also have to clean the house. Each room has to be cleaned once a week. You also have to do the laundry", he said, "Do you know what a washing machine is?"

"No, master", answered Maka.

"I'll explain it later. You also have to bring in my mail each morning, before breakfast. If you open it, I'll have you crucified", he said, "the same applies if you go into my office without my permission. Understand?".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Crucifixion was something she definitely wanted to avoid.

"Oh, and my lawn also needs to be weeded and mowed regularly. In fact, weed it now.", he ordered.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Weeding the lawn took all afternoon, since it had probably never been weeded before, and she took care not to get any grass stains on her dress. Halfway through, it started to rain and a strong wind started to blow. After she was done, soaked to the bone, roughly three quarters of lawn were gone. She went inside as fast as she could to get out of rain. She would have to get out of her clothes soon, or she would get sick. Since she had no clothes to change into, she instead took her dress off and wringed it to get as much water out as possible before she put it back on. But now she had to prepare dinner for her owner. In fact, it may already be late, and her owner was already angry with her. She quickly went into the kitchen, crossing the living room on the way, where her owner was sitting on his couch, watching a fire in the fireplace. She already hated his guts.

Once in the kitchen she realized that she didn't know what her owner wanted for dinner, so she went and asked him.

"What do you want for dinner, master?", asked Maka.

"I got hungry while you were working out there in the rain, so I already ate.", he answered. So he didn't want any dinner.

"On second thought, bring me a bread with honey", he ordered. She went into the kitchen to prepare her owner's bread. She wondered where he kept the honey. She decided to look in the pantry. On the bottom shelf, she found a loaf of bread in a box. On the second shelf from the top, she found a large glass jar of honey. Her owner must be a wealthy man if he could afford such large quantities of honey. While she prepared the bread with honey, she wondered what punishment her owner had devised for her, he had, after all, spent all afternoon thinking about it. Or maybe he had forgotten. He also said that he was going to punish her before he had learned that she prepared the soup from scratch, so maybe he wasn't going to punish her. Remembering that making him wait for his bread would not be a wise choice, she brought him his bread. He took a look at it and put it down on the table.

"Come here", he ordered. Maka obeyed reluctantly, he seemed a bit angry. Once she got within his reach, he slapped her across her face. It hurt more than when the guard slapped her earlier.

"Put butter on the bread before the honey", he said, "now go and make a new one".

"I'm sorry, master. It won't happen again, master", said Maka as she went back to the kitchen and made another bread, this time with butter. She brought him this bread and he ate it without a comment. She took the dish after he was done eating it, and cleaned it in the kitchen. Then she cut a few slices of bread for herself, which she ate along with the honey bread he had rejected. In Maka's village, honey was a rare treat, reserved for special occasions, like weddings. She didn't know what she should do know, so she decided to go to the living room to see if her master wanted anything. But was that really such a good idea? If he didn't see her, he was more likely to forget about punishing her. On the other hand, if he might get angry if she didn't report to him. Well, reporting to him and asking for further orders seemed like the thing least likely to get her into trouble, so she decided to go with it. He was still in his living room, watching the fireplace. He turned around and looked at her once he heard her enter.


	18. Maka's quarters

"You may retire for the evening. I'm going to show you were you may sleep", her owner said while he got up from his chair and moved towards the door. Did this mean that he wasn't going to punish her? It definitively meant that she was allowed to rest now, and she would be able to get out of her wet dress.

"Thank you, master", said Maka as she followed him. He lead her through a corridor into the last room on the left. The room was gray and very small, roughly the same dimensions as the cell in the slave market she had spent the last night, and windowless. Opposite from the door was a bed, which took up half of the room. It was a simple bed, however, it had a pillow and a blanket. The pillow was at the side closest to the door. Next to the bed was a small niche in the wall, probably intended as a nightstand. The most tacky detail of the room was the whipping post next to the end of the bed. It would remind her every day of her position in the house and why she had to escape.

Her owner, once she had entered, closed the door behind her. Maka assumed that meant she would have to stay in this room until morning. Taking the opportunity she took off her wet clothes and hung them over the whipping post, so she wouldn't have to see it and her dress would dry by tomorrow. Then she got into bed. It was much more comfortable than the bunk in the slave market, in fact, it was the most comfortable bed she ever slept in, even better than the one she slept in back home, which had several bags of hay as a mattress. Her owner must be a extremely wealthy man if even she, got such a good bed. She wondered what kind of bed he slept in. It probably had golden silk sheets, with a frame made from platinum. However, falling asleep was rather difficult, as the room was brightly lit by one of these lightspheres hanging from the ceiling, and it didn't seem to go out.

Then she heard her owner walking towards her room. Was he going to punish her, like he said he would during lunch? Then her owner entered the room. He put a small metallic cylinder on the nightstand. Getting a better look at it, Maka saw that it was some kind of clock. Unlike other clocks, it had some kind of bell on the top.

"Do you know what that this is?", he asked her.

"No, master", said Maka, who took care to keep herself covered, partly because of shame, partly because she was afraid of rape.

"It's an alarm clock. It wakes you up at a set time by making noise", he explained. That would definitively come in handy, until her capture she always got up at cock-row. But there didn't seem to be any roosters here.

"Get up while I'm talking to you", he said angrily, then he added, pointing at the whipping post, "or that thing will see some use". Maka quickly got up, using the blanket to cover herself, like a makeshift robe, and apologized.

"Do you know how to read a clock?", asked her owner.

"No, master", said Maka.

"This small hand points at the hour, the large one to the minutes, but the number needs to be multiplied by five", he explained, "Got it?" His explanation was so hasty that Maka didn't really think she got it, but she feared that saying no might upset him.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Good, now this small red one set's the hour when the clock makes noise", he explained before he turned the clock around, "This knob controls the small red hand. This one winds the clock and this one the alarm. Both have to be wound daily. This switch turns the alarm on and off. It's currently in the off position". Then he left, closing the door behind him. Taking a look at the door she noticed that it had a peephole in it. She looked through it, only to see nothing. It must be one of these spy holes. So he could look into her room, but she could not look out and there was no simple way of determining whether she was currently being watched or not. This would complicate her preparations tremendously. However, she was tired from not being able to sleep properly over the last weeks, so she decided she'd just set the alarm and go to sleep.

Looking at the back of the clock, she noticed a knob the owner didn't explain. It would be best not to experiment with it. She turned the alarm on, and wound both the clock and the alarm. Then she tried to decide what a good time to get up would be. He said that he wanted breakfast at seven or at eight, depending on what day of the week it was. But she didn't know what day of the week it was. "Better safe than sorry", she thought and set the alarm to six o clock, figuring that one hour would be enough to prepare breakfast. But the light was still on. There had to be some way to extinct it. That's when she noticed a small switch next to her door. She tried flicking it, and the light went out instantly. When she flicked it again, it went back on. So these small switches controlled the light. Then she went to sleep, glad that she was finally able to sleep in a real bed, after she had been chained in the truck and had to share a hard, small bunk with Lefty.


	19. Making breakfast

At six o'clock the alarm clock rang, and Maka, still used to getting up at cock crow, woke up immediately. She got dressed, put on her sandals and made her bed. Then she she went into the kitchen. She had to prepare breakfast by seven o'clock, but she didn't know what he wanted for breakfast. Maybe the same thing he wanted for dinner yesterday. It was a possibility. What did the wealthy people back in her village eat for breakfast? Bread with expensive stuff on it, like high quality honey, sometimes a few hard boiled eggs. They also drank tea made from exotic herbs. They only used exotic herbs for their tea, to remind themselves that they are better than the riffraff. Maybe her owner wanted exotic tea, too. However, he was much richer than even the wealthiest people in her village. She couldn't think of any better idea, so she decided to look if he had any herbs useful for making tea. She first looked in his pantry. After she had searched for some time, she had found herbs in some sort of bag with a string and a label attached to it. She read the label, which read "[?]-l-a-c [?]-t-e-a" So it was some kind of tea, but for some reason it was packed in a small paper bag, made from very thin paper. She smelled the herbs in the bag and they smelled unlike any herb she knew. So it was exotic tea.

There was one problem however, the tea had apparently been ground into many little pieces. When she made tea back in her village, she would always use whole leaves, taking them out once the tea was otherwise ready to drink. Maybe she would have to sieve the tea after it had finished steeping. Maybe rich people want to consume the herbs with the tea. She decided to sieve the tea after it had steeped. But looking at the time, she determined that she shouldn't start making the tea until it was shortly before seven, or it might cool down to much. She decided to look if his mail had been delivered yet. She left the house, jamming the door with a shoe and went up to the mailbox, which was attached right next to the door. However, it was looked. She wondered where the key was. She would probably have to ask her owner about this, he couldn't possibly want her to break open his mailbox.

After she had returned to the kitchen, she still had half an hour until he breakfast had to be ready, and she was also starting to feel hungry. Maybe she could just eat something now. Her owner wouldn't notice that she ate before him. But maybe he got up before seven o'clock and catch her in the act. Then the whipping post would see some use. Or he would do something worse. It would be better to wait until he allowed her to eat. That way, she wouldn't take an completely avoidable risk.

At quarter to seven, she started making the tea. She ripped open the teabag, poured the tea into the cup and boiled water in a pot. Once the water was boiling, she poured it over the tea. While she let the tea steep, she prepared a bread with honey on it. Still remembering the painful slap from yesterday, she took great care to make this bread perfect. She took out the sieve and sieved out the tea, pouring it into another cup. Unfortunately, the sieve was to large for most of the leaves, letting them pass into the second cup. She figured that it would have to do. She carried the bread on a plate and but it down on the table in the dining room, before putting the cup of tea down next to it, just as she heard her owner coming downstairs.

He was dressed in pyjamas, with his hair uncombed. He wasn't wearing his black toned glasses, revealing his blood red eyes. So he wasn't old. He was just an albino. She had never seen an albino other than him. Also, considering that her earlier assumption of him being old could no longer be supported, she tried to guess his age again. Without the hat and the glasses, he looked quite young. He probably wouldn't die of natural causes anytime soon.

He sat down, grabbed the cup and took a sip. His face immediately contorted and he spat the tea back into the cup. It must have been too hot, which wasn't her fault. Hopefully he would see that the same way. He looked into the cup, perplexed.


	20. Waiting

"Go to your quarters and disrobe completely", he ordered, "then wait". Maka didn't know what she should make of these orders. What would he do? Maybe he would rape her. As she entered her quarters she saw the whipping post. Would he whip her? What should she do? There were only two options, namely to make a run for it or to cooperate. If she made a run for it, there would be no turning back. She didn't know where she was. She didn't know which way she should run. Well she did know that New Nevada is west of West Wyoming, so she would have to run east. But she hadn't packed any food rations, or water rations, which would be extremely problematic. She didn't know how to get her slave collar off. With it on, everyone would recognize her as a fugitive. Maybe she could hide it with a scarf or something similar. But such a piece of clothing would be noticeable. Escaping now would be suicide, she wasn't prepared properly. But what would happen if she didn't make a run for it now. Maybe he would rape her. Maybe he would whip her. Maybe he would tear her toenails out. Maybe he would kill her. On the other hand, it was unlikely that he would kill her.

With cooperation being the most sensible option at the moment, she began to disrobe. Since her clothing only consisted of a single item, she was done rather quickly. She then folded her dress and put it on her bed, before she removed her sandals and put them nice and orderly next to the door. Then she sat down on her bed and waited, her young body shaking in the cold air of the room. What would he do to her and why? Did he remember the incident with the soup, or did he blame her for the tea being too hot. No sound was heard except the ticking of the alarm clock. Had she wound it up? She couldn't remember, so she wound it up again. What would her owner do to her? She heard him getting up. He walked in her direction. She heard him open a door. It was not hers. He closed the door and went back, he still didn't come to her. She heard the legs of a chair scrape against the floor. Then silence. What was he doing? Was he looking for a whip? Or some pliers? Would he rape her? He got up again from his chair and walked short distance then stopped. Then he walked again and sat down. If he sat in the kitchen, and was now sitting there again, then he either went into his kitchen or into his living room. What could he have been looking for? A knife? Would he cut her? If yes, where and how deep? A short while later he once again got up from his chair. He started walking again. After a short while he opened a door, once again not hers, but the steps were to far away for that to happen anyways, and closed it again. After a short while, he opened and closed the door once again. Now the steps where coming closer. Then a bell rung. The steps stopped. The bell rung again. The steps continued, but they weren't getting closer anymore. The bell rung again.

"Rejoice! It's me! The great and powerful Dr. Blackstar! Who will surpass god within the next five years!", yelled an unfamiliar voice, presumably Dr. Blackstar. Where did he come from? How did he enter her owner's home. Maybe her owner was in danger. Maybe she would be rewarded if she saved him. Then she heard him chatting, apparently with Dr. Blackstar. So he probably wasn't in any danger. She couldn't understand any part of the conversation. In fact, she couldn't hear Dr. Blackstar at all. If she hadn't heard him before, she would assume her owner was talking to himself. He began to lower his voice to the point that she couldn't hear him anymore. The silence lasted for several seconds.

"Hasn't anybody ever told you that it's still extremely rude to yell into the phone like that?", yelled her owner, presumably at Dr. Blackstar. Then the conversation continued in a normal tone. After a few minutes, they had stopped talking. Her owner then started to walk again. After a while he opened and closed a door again. Maka wished he would just finally get around to doing what he wanted to do to her. Her owner opened and closed a door again. Then he walked a short distance. A short time after he had stopped walking, he started to talk to Dr. Blackstar again, who still didn't make any sound. Who was this Dr. Blackstar? A friend of her owner? A distant relative? A colleague? Why couldn't he be heard when he wasn't yelling, despite his yelling having average volume? Why did he yell into a phone? Why was it rude to yell into a phone? Was it more or less rude than normal yelling? What is a phone?

Maybe her owner had forgotten about what he wanted to do to her. He hadn't punished her for taking one and a half hours to prepare a soup. Or maybe he was about to punish her for that now. What was he going to do to her? She noticed that her owner's voice began to sound agitated. Dr. Blackstar was apparently making him angry. No doubt that he would take it out on her. After all, he could do whatever he wanted to her. The conversation stopped and he walked towards her quarters now. He began turning the doorknob. He opened the door. Maka quickly stood up. He grabbed her by her arm, dragged her to the whipping post and began to restrain her hands with the restraints on the back of the post. So he would only whip her. Cooperation would be the best option. The restraint seemed to be to high, so he adjusted it, she couldn't see exactly how, but it seemed to involve removing and replacing a bolt. After he had finished restraining her, each of her lower arms was restrained above the wrist and under the elbow, forcing her onto her tiptoes, facing the post. And despite the whipping post not having any locks, it seemed to be impossible to free oneself. It would probably be possible if on struggled enough, but it would still take very long.


	21. Punishment

"Seems like I have forgotten the whip", he said to himself, before he turned to leave. She heard him walk away. Then he opened and closed a door, twice, and came back. Maka looked at the door, which was rather uncomfortable, considering how she was tied. Her owner entered the room, holding his left hand behind his back. He was probably holding the whip in said hand. He went up to her and showed her what he held in his left hand. It was indeed a whip. A whip with several thick strands, made from leather.

"Counting them?", asked her owner, "This scourge has seven strands, affixed to a sturdy wooden handle. The strands are made from leather, each one roughly thirty centimeters long". Then, without any further hesitation, he started the whipping. The first lash still caught her by surprise. She felt each of the seven individual strand, as it left a painful sensation on her back. It was intense flash of pain, followed by a lingering pain. The second lash landed to the right of the first, some strands inferred with the streaks left by the first lash, which felt as if the affected area had a red hot glowing iron pressed into it. After three lashes, there was no conceivable way left to place a lash on her back without some of the strands interfering, and each time a area was hit again, the lingering pain became more intense, slowly building a intense background pain. After five lashes, she broke out in tears. One lash later, she lost count of the lashes. After a few more lashes, the intense pain in her back began to overshadow all other sensations, like the restrains cutting into her lower arms or the strain from standing on her tiptoes. She didn't hear anything besides the sound of the lash and her own screaming, or should it be called crying. After a few more lashes, she couldn't feel the individual lashes anymore, feeling only an intense continues stream of pain coming from her back, steadily becoming worse. In fact, she couldn't feel any part of her body except her back, she was entirely focused on the intense pain. There seemed to be a spot, on her left shoulder blade, to be precise, that hadn't been whipped as hard yet, but another lash remedied that situation. After several more lashes, the pain slowly started to recede. Had her owner stopped whipping her? Apparently, he had, but the pain was still intense. She noticed that she was practically hanging in her restraints, which were cutting into her lower arms, so She pulled herself back up onto her tiptoes. A short while later, she stopped crying and her breathing slowed. Her owner removed her restraints, whereupon she immediately collapsed to the floor.

"Come to my office in ten minutes", ordered her owner before he left the room. Maka lay on the floor floor a few minutes before she found the strength to stand up. She was surprised that she wasn't lying in a puddle of blood. She put her hand on her back and stroked it upwards, which hurt immensely. Upon looking at her hand, she found once again that there was no blood. The whipping hadn't drawn blood. She thought it had. Her owner wanted her to be at his office in ten minutes. Looking at the alarm clock, she realized that she didn't know how much time had elapsed since he gave the order. If she would be late, he would probably whip her again. A second whipping would probably hurt much more on her already whipped back and it would probably draw blood. She put her dress back on, followed by her sandals. She wiped the tears from her eyes with the arm of her dress, before she went to find her owner.

The only problem was that she didn't know where his office was. She walked into the anteroom. Where could his office be? It had to be somewhere. Her owner was a lawyer. Where would a lawyer put his office? He probably didn't want to lead his clients through all of his house, it had to be somewhere close to the anteroom, she would have to start searching from here. The anteroom had three doors besides the front door. One lead to the dining room, another to the hallway where Maka's quarter was in. Why did her owner refer to it as "quarters", since it was just one room? Maka didn't know what was behind the third door. Maybe it was his office. She would have to find out. But hadn't he told her that her would crucify her if she entered it. On the other hand, he had ordered her to come to his office. It would probably be best if she knocked first, so she knocked on the door.

"Wait", said her owner from behind the door, a few seconds later he added, "enter". Maka turned the doorknob and opened the door. Her owner, he was now wearing a casual outfit, consisting of a white shirt, sat behind an ornate desk on the right side of the room, behind him was a window overlooking his front lawn, which she had weeded yesterday. On his desk was a typewriter, like the mayor of her village used to have, a paperweight in form of a statue of soldiers operating a mortar on top of a pile of documents, a fancy fountain pen and a hole punch. The opposite wall was covered with a large closet with lockable compartments. One compartment was open, revealing a bookshelf with several binders. On the right hand wall stood a bookshelf, next to a large safe, with a door between the safe and the bookshelf. Maka wondered what was inside the safe. The bag her owner made her carry yesterday was lying on a chair next to the safe. Above the safe hung a document in a golden frame, Maka wondered what made this document so important. There was a blue carpet in the center of the room.


	22. Dr Evan's Bedroom

"You wanted to see me, Master?", asked Maka with a shaky voice.

"Yes, do you know how to prepare tea?", asked her owner. Before she could answer, he added "because, the tea you served me today was rather interesting. You apparently opened the tea bag and emptied the contest into the cup".

"I tried to sieve it afterwards, but it didn't work properly, master", said Maka.

"That doesn't explain why you opened the teabag in the first place. But on second thought, I don't even want to know. You also failed to bring me my mail", said her owner, "I hope you realize that such behavior will not be tolerated. You will also not get any breakfast today". So he had punished her for the tea and her failure to bring in the mail. The proper way to prepare tea was apparently to put the teabag into the cup and pour water over it? Wouldn't that make the tea taste like paper?

"I'm sorry, master. It won't happen again, master.", said Maka.

"Anyway, I'm going to show you around the house now", he said, "as you have probably already guessed, this is my office, also known as the room you're not allowed to enter without my permission. That door over there leads to the living room". He went towards her, and out of the door. Maka followed him. After she had left the room, he locked the door behind her.

"Follow me", he ordered.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she followed him into the same hallway where her room was. He opened the first door on the left.

"This is a junk room", he said, moving on to the room opposite to it, "and this is the laundry room". Maka first closed the door to the junk room, before she looked into the laundry room. It contained a cubical machine. Said machine had a circular hatch on the front, underneath a control panel with several knobs and buttons and a drawer. There was a small, rectangular hatch in the lower left corner of the machine. There were several bottles standing on top of the machine, along with a large cuboid package. Before the mashine was a pile of dirty laundry.

"Do you know what that's for a machine?", asked her owner.

"No, master.", said Maka.

"It's a washing machine. It washes clothing. Load the laundry into this hatch", he said.

"Yes, master", said Maka, as she got down to pick up the laundry. Then her owner slapped her across the face.

"Let me finish", said her owner.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"Before you put the clothes in there, you have to empty all the pockets of their contest. Anything that has buttons must be turned inside out", he explained, "Then you add the laundry detergent", pointing at the large cuboid box, "After which you set the temperature on this knob, then you set the time on this knob, an hour is generally enough. After all of this is done, you start the machine with this button".

"Should I do the laundry now, master?", asked Maka.

"No, later", he answered, "now follow me"

"Yes, master", said Maka before she followed him. He lead her through the living room and up a stair, into a room.

"This is my bedroom. You have to clean it once a week. After you have washed and ironed my clothes, put them in the dresser over there. By the way, the ironing board and the iron are in the junk room, as well as the clothes rack", he explained. Maka took a good look around the room. It was not as impressive as she thought it would be, but large non the less. The bed, a large double bed, was very ornate, with a geometric pattern etched into the headboard. The bedding was very delicate, definitively of very high quality and very expensive. There was a nightstand on both sides of the bed, both had a lamp with one these lightspheres. On the right nightstand was an alarm clock, a picture of a family with five children, three boys and two girls. The second youngest one of the boys appeared to be her owner. Every single family member seemed to be affected by albinism.

What captured her interest even more was a small, empty and open safe, which appeared to have a rack for a single handgun inside. So this was were her owner kept his gun. He probably locked it in when he went to sleep, and took it out when he got dressed in the morning. So at all times he was either carrying his gun or had it locked in it's safe. Stealing it would be near impossible. He would also notice it very soon. Stealing the handgun would have to be one of the last things she did before ultimately making a run for it. In fact, she would have to steal it right before her escape. But how should she open the safe. Breaking it open would not wake up her owner, so she would have to crack it. But she had no idea how to crack a safe. Maybe she could steal the whole safe and then crack it while she was escaping.

"Before I forget, the bedding has to be changed every two weeks. Moving on, this door leads to my bathroom", he said, "like most other rooms, it has to be cleaned once a week. On a related note, you are not allowed to use it. The only bathroom you are allowed to use is the one between dining- and anteroom and the shower in the basement". Maka took look around the bathroom. It was a large room, containing two sinks next to each other, a bathtub, made from a white material, perhaps ceramic, combined with one these indoor wells, from the indoor well went a tube upwards, where it ended in a handle that had nozzle attached to it, which was perforated in a circular pattern. Opposite the bathtub was a white chair like object, which reminded Maka of a latrine. What struck her most about it was a small golden lever attached to the side of the latrine's backrest. Maka wondered what this lever was there for.


	23. The rest of the house

"The shower's drainage sometimes get blocked, should this happen, you will hove to unplug it. For this purpose I have bottle drain cleaner stored underneath the left sink. Just follow the pictograms on the bottle and don't eat it", her owner said before he left the bathroom. He showed her the rest of the upper story. It contained another bathroom, several unoccupied bedrooms, and his personal library.

The library was a large room filled with several bookshelves, each completely filled with books and a sphere in stand in a corner. But what captured Maka's attention most where the maps that were hanging of the walls. There were all kinds of maps.

"This is my library, it has to be cleaned once a week", said her master, before he left the room and she had to follow him. Stealing one of these maps would be too noticeable, but maybe she could copy the relevant ones. She would have to find paper and something to write with.

She followed her owner into his basement. The first room was filled with several display cases, all locked and containing various objects, she couldn't recognize a single one.

"This is my private museum", said her owner, "it has to be cleaned once a week and if you damage one of the exhibits, I'll have you crucified". He showed her into the next room, which contained several tools, including a large, stationary circular saw.

"This room is barely used, so it doesn't have to be cleaned regularly", said her owner, before he went into the next room, which was a large junk room, which had a door on it's far side. Her owner pointed at a large circular nozzle attached to the ceiling with a chain hanging next to it.

"This is the shower you may use to clean yourself", he explained, before he left the room. The chain probably turned it on, which would probably result in water coming out of the nozzle. Her owner went into the next room with Maka following him. This room was empty.

"This room doesn't need to be cleaned regularly", explained her owner, as he went back upstairs, "This actually extends to all rooms in the basement except for my museum". He went back to his office. He unlocked the door and entered his office. Maka wanted to follow him, but he gestured for her to stay out. A short while later he came back out, handing her a stack of greyish brown clothes.

"Before I forget, I have three backup dresses for you, I don't want you walk around my house in a dirty dress", he explained.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, "is there anything you want me to do now?". Her owner took out his golden clock and looked at the time.

"Clean the anteroom. You can find a broom, a dustpan, a mop and a bucket in the junk room, after you have finished, do the laundry. One thing I forgot to mention, do not mix colored, white or black clothes. My suits have to be dry cleaned, do not wash them"


	24. Deliberations of escape

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she put the dresses into her room. Then she went into the junk room, which was so untidy, that she had to search several minutes for the dustpan. Then it occurred to her that this would make it a good place to hide the preparations for her escape. Dr. Evans probably didn't know himself what was in this room, and he probably wouldn't search it himself, he would make her do it instead. Therefore it would be very easy to hide stuff from him in here. As long as he didn't order her to clean it up it would be completely risk free, but even then she would still be able to hide her preparations somewhere else, seeing that he certainly wouldn't help her clean it. There was also a junk room in the basement, which would also be a suitable place to hide her preparations. She had access to both rooms, practically all the time.

While she was sweeping the floor, she thought what she needed in order to escape. Now that she knew where she would hide her preparations, she could start gathering the stuff she needed to escape. She would need a map. One of the ones in his library would probably do, she would have to get a closer look at them when she had to clean the library. Then she would have to find writing utensils and copy the relevant information. Where could she find writing utensils? He probably kept some in his office. But he locked it all the time when he was not inside. And he would crucify her if he caught her inside. Well, she would probably end up on a cross anyway if she was caught running away, so she would have to risk crucifixion anyway, but she should minimize that risk. It would be best if she found writing utensils outside of his office. She would also have to pack food rations. She had access to his pantry, she would be able to steal food and hide it. If she only stole small amounts, he would never notice a thing. More difficult would be the water rations. Water, being a liquid, could not be stored the same way as solids. She would have to steal bottles, or other suitable containers, and fill them with water. Given the fact that these sinks seemed to contain a very large quantities of water, the best strategy would be to fill them on the evening of her escape. Getting her hands on rations would be trivial.

After she had finished sweeping the anteroom, she filled the bucket with water and began to mop the floor. Such monotonous labor made it easy to think of virtually anything else than the task at hand, so she continued plotting her escape. Some things would not be as easy. She would have to get rid of her slave collar, or she would easily get recognized as a runaway. But if Lefty's account was accurate, getting rid of the collar was very hard. What options where there to deal with the collar. The best way would be to remove it. Then nobody would be to able to tell that she was a runaway. But the collar was probably to tough to cut with anything found in a normal household. Therefore, it was very likely that her owner didn't have anything suitable for this task. Also, Lefty had told her that the collar was easy to damage. Running away with the collar visibly damaged would be even harder than running away with the collar fully intact and attached, as it would mark her as a runaway. If the collar was simply attached and undamaged, it would not necessarily make the people think that they should detain her. Was there a reward for returning runaway slaves to their owners? Another option for dealing with the collar would be to cover with a scarf or something similar. That would only work if it a scarf is climate appropriate. If she tried to do something like that now, a scarf would only look suspicious. Another option would be to remove the label. On the other hand, that would be suspicious as hell. She would have to try and find a way to remove the collar.

But how should she do that? There were two options, cutting it, unlocking it or picking the lock. She didn't know what was strong enough to cut it, and experimenting with her own collar would be like playing Quebec roulette. Unlocking it would require her to get her hands on the key. Her owner probably had the key. But he probably kept it in a safe place, but where? Maybe in the safe in his office. Picking the lock would also be difficult, since she had never picked a lock before. Maybe hiding it would be the best option after all.

But how to hide it? With a scarf obviously. But that would attract attention, unless it was winter. In West Wyoming, it was winter twice a year, a long winter in the latter third of the year, and the midsummer winter, which often lasted only a week, but was the coldest time of the year. If it wasn't so short, it would ruin every harvest. If New Nevada was in the same weather zone as West Wyoming, the midsummer winter would bring a nice window of opportunity. If New Nevada only had one long winter, she would have to pack fuel for fires and thick clothes, or she would freeze to death. If there were no winters in New Nevada, hiding the collar would not be an option. She'd have to figure out what weather zone New Nevada was in.


	25. Money

After she had finished mopping the floor, she put the mop and the broom back into the junk room. She went into the laundry room and started to do laundry. Her owner had told her that she shouldn't mix different colors of clothing, so she decided to start with the black clothing. Most of the black clothing were pants, all possessing buttons, so she turned them inside out and checked the pockets. Most were empty. However, in one she found bill. It had someones face on it, and a number, starting with a one and followed by three zeros, it was ten times a hundred. Maka put the bill on the top of the washing machine, and, as she continued doing the laundry, wondered what she would do with it. She could tell her owner, obviously. But would that be such a good idea? She didn't know how he would react. Whatever he would do in this case, it would not be as bad as what he would do if he found out that she had simply taken the bill. What would he do if he thought she had stolen money? That would probably depend on the amount in question. Maybe he would just whip her, like he did earlier today, or he may crucify her. Maka also began to wonder how much this bill was worth. It probably wasn't worth that much if her owner simply forgot about it. He would probably never notice that the money was missing.

But what would he do if she gave him the bill back? Maybe he would reward her. But what if he decided to punish her instead. On the other hand, in that case he would be punish her for honesty, which wouldn't make much sense. He would probably reward her, or at least praise her for her honesty. Or he might simply take the money and do nothing else. Giving the money back to him seemed to be a very safe option.

She also had to consider what she could do with the money. She could spend it , but to spend it before she escaped would be impossible, since she would not be allowed to leave his house. She could sneak out, but that would probably not be as useful. On her escape, however, it could be extremely useful. She could use the money to buy food and water, or as a bribe. The exact usefulness would depend on the value of the money. However, carrying money would also make her a target for robbery. But wouldn't she already be a target for every bounty hunter and petty criminal for being a runaway?

She closed the machine's hatch and began to adjust the settings. Her owner had said that an hour would be enough. But how would the knob have to be turned so that it was set to one hour? The knob was labeled with various numbers, starting at ten "[?]", going in steps of tens until a hundred and ten "[?]". Then the numbering continued at two "h". The "h" probably stood for hours. Since a hour was sixty minutes, the symbol after larger numbers probably stood for minutes. She set the knob to sixty minutes. Setting the temperature would be harder, because she didn't know at what temperature to clean these specific clothes. However, she had learned that low temperatures were generally safe, if not as efficient as the optimal temperature. The knob for the temperature had numbers on it, starting at thirty, going in steps of tens up to ninety. Each number was followed by a small circle and a "C". What did the small circle and the "C" represent? How much where thirty "°C". Fortunately, there was also a setting marked by a horizontal dash. That would probably mean that the machine wouldn't heat the water. She decided to go with this setting. The worst thing that could happen would be that the clothing would have to be laundered twice. Even if her owner would punish her for this, the punishment would not be as severe as if she had ruined his clothing. With every setting being set, she started the machine.

As the machine sprung into action, she decided to go to her owner and tell him about the money she found. Based on her owner's reaction, she would be able to judge how she should deal with found money in the future. But where was he? Maybe in his office. She went towards the office, a low clacking sound coming from the door. It was always a series of clacks, followed by a ding, then more clacking. Sometimes the clacking stopped, only to resume a short while later. She would have to knock first. But how would her owner react to such a disturbance. He probably wouldn't like it, he was obviously busy at the moment. But maybe he would get angry if she didn't tell him about the money soon. Taking a deep breath, she knocked at the door. The clacking stopped. She could hear her owner get up from his chair. He walked towards the door and opened it.

"This better be important", he said.

"I finished the laundry", said Maka timidly.

"I'll go get the whip", he said, as he stepped out of the door and locked it behind him. Maka realized that he thought that she was wasting his time, and now he wanted to give her a whipping. Having an already sore back, Maka started to panic as she knew she had to say something.

"No, please master, please don't. I can explain", said Maka.

"You've got a minute", he said, still moving for the whip.

"I found this money in one of your clothes", said Maka, as she handed him the bill. Her owner took the bill, looked at it and stopped walking. He was thinking it over. Maybe he wouldn't whip her.

"This is not important enough to interrupt my work. I won't whip you now, but the next time you interrupt my work for something that can clearly wait, I will", he said, as he went back into his office.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, relieved that he let her off with a warning. But how would he have reacted if she hadn't disturbed him at work? He would probably have reacted positively. After all, he changed his mind after she had told the real reason for interrupting him. She still had no idea how much this money was actually worth. It couldn't be worth that much if her owner had simply forgotten about it.


	26. The library

Maka wondered what she should do now. If her owner caught her twiddling her thumbs, he would certainly be very angry with her. That's probably what he meant with "if you turn out to be a bad investment". Getting sold to a fuel farm would be a death sentence. She would have to look busy in case her owner came by. Looking at the time, it was nine o'clock, she decided that there was enough time until lunch had to be ready, and the washing machine would not be done until ten o'clock. She decided to go and clean and his library, so that she could study the maps while she seemed to be working.

Maka started by sweeping the library's floor, being especially throughout with the floor right in front of the maps. One map showed a a couple of landmasses surrounded by water, marked in blue. The landmasses were marked in colors from green over light brown to dark brown, the dark brown probably representing mountains, some however, were marked in white. The largest landmass was on the map's bottom, and entirely in white. The second largest landmass was in the upper left corner. This landmass also seemed to posses more mountains than any other, with almost the entire lower right quarter filled with them. The north of this landmass, however was marked in green.

Below this landmass where two other landmasses. One large one and a small one. The large one was located close to the center of the map, but most of it was located to the right of it. This landmass consisted of a rectangle with a triangle tacked to the bottom of it. It mostly colored in light brown. There was almost no green. The second landmass was a small roughly rectangular landmass, with equal amounts of green and brown. There several very small landmasses between this landmass and the large one.

There were two more landmasses, on the left of the map, arranged in a hourglass shape. However, the lower glass of the hourglass was not a triangle, but a diamond. And, under closer inspection, these two landmasses were connected, so they really only counted as one large landmass. The landmass had a mountain range running along its entire left coast. Looking at the entire map, Maka could not figure out what the area portrayed was called or if it even existed.

Maka decided to move on to the next map, since this one was obviously of no use to her. So she swiped one aisle of the library, then the next one and took a long time to swipe the floor in front of the next map. This one showed the same area as the last map, however large areas, all but the hourglass shaped landmass and the white ones were colored red. There were small stick figures drawn in the red area, with two digit numbers written next to each group of stick figures. These numbers ranged all between thirty and forty. There was an especially large group of stick figures in the lower right quarter of the large landmass. Similar large groups could be found in a triangular bit of landmass tacked on to the middle of the large landmass, and in the two landmasses below it. In the lower corner of the map was a picture of an elderly man, who looked like a slightly younger version of Dr. Eisenberg, next to a long text, which Maka had not enough time to read.

The next map showed a a patchwork of different colored territories on a landmass, which Maka recognized to be upper part of the hourglass shaped landmass on the previous two maps. The territories where colored in different colors, ranging from green over orange to red. She could recognize her homeland on the map, it was colored red. A bit to the west she could see New Nevada, which was marked in green. She noted that the New Confederates, also known as East Wyoming, was also marked on the map. She had learned in school that East Wyoming is a dirty, treacherous conglomerate of traitors and criminals not deserving any official recognition as a country.

The next map showed a an island. While it looked like a rather nice island to live on, it held no valuable information for her. The next map, which apparently showed a the layout of a very large complex, was equally worthless. In fact, her owner didn't seem to actually have a map in his library which seemed to be of use for her escape. So Maka finished sweeping the floor, dusted all surfaces and mopped the floor.

Once she was done with the library, she looked at the clock and decided that it was time to prepare lunch. So boiled a few potatoes and made a soup out of leftover leek and celery. At twelve o'clock her owner came and ate his meal. He seemed to like it.

"I must say, your cooking is very swell", said her owner.

"Thank you, master", said Maka.

"I noticed that there is almost nothing left of my lawn after you weeded it", said her owner. Maka wondered whether he was angry or not.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"There should be a box of grass seeds in the basement, I think in the room with the shower. Replant the lawn after you've done the dishes", he ordered.


	27. Blair the cat

"Yes, master", said Maka. She waited hungrily until he had finished eating, she hadn't had any breakfast. After he had finished, he left the room and Maka did the dishes after she ate the leftovers. Then she went downstairs, into the junk room. There she started to look through the clutter. The first thing she found was an old backpack with a camouflage pattern, which would be really useful. She should probably dig through all of her owner's junk rooms, there was no telling what else there was to find, maybe he had even a gun somewhere in there, but that was probably only wishful thinking. After she found a variety of completely useless objects, like a small pink statue of a bird with two long legs and a similarly long neck, she finally found a box with a lawn painted on the side. She opened the box, it was filled with grass seeds. Maka took the box, went outside and started to plant the seeds. There was a male slave raking the lawn next door. She didn't know why he was raking it, as there were no leaves or anything else on the lawn. Maybe she should talk to him, he probably knew a lot about this country, and maybe he was planning to escape, too.

"Hello, how are you?" asked Maka.

"I'm fine", he replied, in an eerily familiar accent, looking up, "Dr. Evans bought a slave, what a surprise".

"My name's Maka and you are?" asked Maka, trying to figure out what that was for an accent.

"Name's Jonathan", he replied. Maka knew that accent from somewhere, where was this Jonathan from?

"What do you know about Dr. Evans?", asked Maka.

"Your master? Well, he's lawyer, is a quite talented musician, sometimes he plays piano with his window open", He replied. Maybe it was an Odgen accent.

"Say, why are you raking the lawn?", asked Maka.

"For the same reason you are planting a lawn", replied Jonathan.

"What are you raking?", asked Maka.

"No idea", he replied. Maka moved closer to him.

"Have you ever thought about escape?", whispered Maka.

"No, I don't like the risk-reward ratio", he replied.

"What's that?", asked Maka.

"That means I don't like the risk of getting flayed alive", explained Jonathan.

"But don't you want to be free?", asked Maka.

"Yes, but I don't think it's worth risking my life over", said Jonathan, as he finished raking the lawn of Dr. Evan's neighbor, as he put the rake away before he went into his owner's house. When Maka turned around, she saw a black cat, wearing a witch hat. The cat sat in the far end of the garden, watching her silently which her yellow eyes, her tail being curled into a spiral. Maka wondered why the cat was wearing a witch hat. Maybe the cat had magical powers. Maka wished she could trade places with this cat.

The cat proceeded to lie down in the center of the lawn, letting the sun shine on it's fur, covering it's eyes with its hat. Maka was amazed at how calm the cat was. It barely knew her, yet it was not afraid of her. Maka finished planting the lawn, the cat ignored her during the entire time. Then the cat meowed. It meowed at Maka. Maka proceeded to go back inside, and the cat followed her. The cat's behavior was starting to freak Maka out. She entered the house and tried to slam the door shut, but the cat managed to slip through and started to run. Maka didn't wanted to think about how her owner would react to seeing this stray cat inside his house, she would have to remove it, so she gave chase. The cat ran to his office and started to meow loudly at the door. Was this cat trying to get her into trouble? She grabbed at the cat, but it simply jumped aside, causing Maka to crash into the door. She quickly got back up and continued to chase the cat. Her owner opened the door. The cat ran towards the wall, but turned around completely at the last moment and ran between Maka's legs, causing her to crash into the wall. Looking around, she saw how the cat had ran towards her owner and sat down at his feet. Her owner started to pet the cat, running his hand down the cat's back as the cat purred triumphantly.

"It was entertaining watching you chase after Blair", said Dr. Evans. Maka wondered how many bruises she had gotten when she crashed into the door and the wall.

"But don't chase Blair again, she always welcome here", added Dr. Evans, before he picked Blair up and carried her out of his front door. Then he went back into his office.

Maka went to finish the laundry. She looked for the laundry rack in the junk room, where she found it. She had to find a place to build it up. She decided to build it in the hallway before the laundry room. After she had build it up, she hanged the clothes on it. She went back into the laundry room and loaded the washing machine a second time before she went to clean her owner's bathroom. After she was done, she saw that it was time to prepare dinner, so she went into the kitchen and prepared several breads with honey and put them on the table. A short while later her owner came and ate the breads. Then he went into his living room and started to play his piano. Maka ate her dinner before she did the dishes. She couldn't stop thinking about what Jonathan said about escape, he didn't like the risk reward ratio. Was that true for her as well? If she escaped, she could live as a free citizen of the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming again. If she didn't escape, she would spent the rest of her live as a slave. The same was probably true for Jonathan as well, depending on where he was from. How could freedom not be worth the risk?

She went into the living room, where her owner was playing the piano. He briefly stopped, then started to play another melody. His music was so good, Maka wished she could just listen to it all day. But she knew that if he caught her twiddling her thumbs, he would sell her to a fuel farm. Dr. Evans hammered into the keys, closed the lid on the piano keyboard and turned around.

"What exactly have you done today?", asked her owner. Maka didn't knew where he was going with this. Was she in trouble? Or did he just want to make sure that she worked hard. What did he want to hear? So she told him which chores she had done on this day. After she finished her explanation, her owner remained silent for a while, as if he was trying to decide whether he should punish her or not. Maka hoped he was satisfied, her back still hurt from the whipping he gave her earlier that day.

"You may retire for the evening", he said, as Maka turned to go to her room, he added, "Before I forget, I don't want honey for breakfast tomorrow". Once she was in her room, Maka quickly went to bed. Lying in her bed, she mentally went over her escape plan. The maps in her owner's library were completely worthless. But where could she find better ones? The whole thing already proved to be more problematic than she had imagined. But that would not deter her. And with that determination, she went to sleep.


	28. Planning of a dinner

The next morning she didn't know what she should prepare for breakfast, so she decided to simply butter a few slices of bread, that way more could always be added to it. When she went for the mail, there was a newspaper sticking out of the mailbox, so she pulled it out and put it on the dining table next to the bread. She put one of the bags with the exotic smelling leaves into a cup and poured boiling water over it. When it was finished steeping, she removed it by the string attached to the bag, which was very practical, much easier than fishing out large leaves with a fork. Shortly before seven o'clock, she put the cup on the table. When the clock struck seven, she heard her owner coming downstairs. He sat down in his chair and looked at the newspaper.

"There's no other mail except the paper today?", he asked.

"There may still be some in the mailbox, but I don't have the key, master", said Maka.

"The key to the mailbox hangs on the key holder on the coat rack, second key to the right", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka before she went to get his mail. There were, however, two keys hanged on said hook, connected by a ring. She took both and quickly found out which one opened the mailbox. She grabbed the letters inside and brought them to her owner. He had already eaten some of the bread.

"Bring me a knife", he ordered. Maka obeyed, wondering what he wanted to do with the knife. She had heard him fetch a knife yesterday, while she was waiting for her whipping, but still, she wondered what he wanted to do with the knife. After she had handed him the knife, he used it to open his mail. He quietly read his mail. Maka decided that she should use the time to clean the kitchen, if her owner wanted anything, he could easily call her. And after a while, she was cleaning the counters, he did.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka, as she went into the dining room.

"Your duties will also include grocery shopping. I will show you around town so that you know where the corresponding stores are", said Dr. Evans. Maka was surprised, she didn't expect to be given tasks that would require her to leave her owner's estate, yet alone handling money. This would make her escape much easier.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She wondered when he would show her around town, she could probably figure out where the hell she was.

"I'm also going to have guests for dinner tonight, you will have to prepare a three course dinner for eight people", ordered Dr. Evans.

"What should I cook, master?", asked Maka. Dr. Evans took some time to think.

"A carrot soup as the appetizer, lamb fillet with fettuccine and a mushroom soup as a site dish and a key lime pie as dessert", said Dr. Evans. Maka was shocked. Back in her village, meat was only eaten on special occasions, but what her owner had planned seemed to be some kind of casual get together.

"What are fettuccine, master?", asked Maka.

"Long flat noodles", explained Dr. Evans, "Do you know what I mean?"

"Yes, master. By when does the dinner have to be ready, master?", asked Maka.

"Eight o'clock, any other questions?", said Dr. Evans.

"What is key lime pie, master?", asked Maka.

"It's a pie with limes and it's...", said Dr. Evans, stopping to think,"...asymmetrical. Prepare an apple pie instead". Maka wondered why the symmetry mattered.

"Yes, master", said Maka. The lamb would take an hour to prepare, the cake would have to sit for two hours and the stock of the soups would take an hour each. Therefore it would be best if she started working on the meal at four o'clock. She went back into the kitchen and continued to clean it.


	29. Ironing

A short while later, Dr. Evans had finished eating his meal, she heard him getting up from his seat. She went back to fetch the dishes and ate a few slices of bread. After she had finished cleaning the kitchen and the dishes, she decided to do the laundry. She took the dried clothes of the laundry rack, before she started to look in the junk room for the iron and the ironing board. She found the ironing board almost immediately, but she had to search a bit for the iron. The iron looked different from any iron she had seen before. It mostly looked like one of these fancy irons that have to be filled with hot coals, but instead of a compartment for coal, it had a long, thick rope. Said rope ended in a pyramid with a rectangular base. On the bottom of the base were two parallel sticks, long and flat, each with a hole in its end. There were two large buttons on the handle, just above a nozzle. She found a opening below the nozzle, but this one was too small to fill it with coal. Under the handle was a dial with several numbers written on it, each followed by "°C". She would have to find a way to heat the iron up. But how? Obviously with her owner's stove.

She put the iron on a plate of the stove and turned the heat up. Now she would have to wait until the iron was hot. It would take a few minutes. She could use this time to dust the living room, so she grabbed the feather duster and went to dust the living room. She first dusted the bookshelf, she would have to go over it with a wet rag later.

"Maka!", yelled her owner. He had called her from the kitchen, and by his tone of voice, he did not want to be left waiting. She put the feather duster aside and ran into the kitchen, where her owner was already waiting for her. He had removed the iron from the hot plate.

"Why did you put the iron on the hot plate?", asked her owner angrily.

"I was heating it, so that I can iron your clothes, master", said Maka timidly.

"Are you playing dumb with me?", asked her owner.

"No, master, I would never...", said Maka.

"This is an electric iron, you plug this end into an outlet", explained her owner, now sounding completely calm and he was holding the end of the rope, "set the temperature on this dial, and it will heat up by itself. Fill this compartment with water first, and this button will cause steam to come out of it"

"I'm sorry, master, I didn't know", said Maka, relieved that he had decided not to punish her. Dr. Evans left the room, leaving Maka to figure out what an outlet was. Maybe these plates with two holes in them which she had assumed to be decoration? The end of the rope looked like it would fit into such a thing. She decided to try it. She pushed the end of the rope into the wall decoration and it fit perfectly. She decided to dial the experiment up a notch and turned the dial on the iron. After a while, it became hot. So this wall decoration was really an outlet. She build up the ironing board and started to iron the clothes.

Once she had ironed and folded them all, she carried them up to her owner's room. There she found him getting dressed. Already wearing pants and a sleeveless shirt, in the process of putting on the shoulder holster of his gun. Maka quickly apologized and closed the door. She wondered if her owner would punish her for this. She decided to wait until he either left the room or called her inside.

"Maka!", he called after a few minutes. Maka entered the room, he was now wearing a light blue shirt over his handgun holster. The safe was also open and empty, he was armed.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka. Holding the stack of clean clothes so that her owner could see them.

"Put the clean clothes into the dresser and then clean yourself. Be in the anteroom in twenty minutes", ordered her owner.

"Yes, master", said Maka as she started to sort the clothes into the appropriate drawers of the dresser. She wondered if she could find anything there other than clothes. She would search the drawer more thoroughly, but she didn't have the time to erase the traces of such a search, so her owner would notice. After she had sorted all the clothes, she had to clean herself. Cleaning herself with a sink would take to long, and she wasn't allowed to use any of the bathtubs. But her owner had mentioned a shower in the basement that she may use to clean herself. So she went into the basement. Looking at the shower, she immediately had an idea of how to use it. She got naked, stepped under the nozzle, and pulled the string, and as she had assumed, a stream of cold water poured over her. She made sure that the water reached all areas of her body, cleaning herself thoroughly. After she had finished, she realized that she had forgotten to bring a rag to dry herself. There were some in her owner's bathroom, in fact, there were some in every bathroom, even the one she was allowed to use. She decided to use her dress to dry herself and then put on one of her other dresses, instead of going upstairs naked. Her dress had several stains, anyway. After she had done so, she waited in the anteroom.


	30. The city

"Hands", ordered her owner, who entered from his living room. Was he going to handcuff her again? Maka turned to him and held her hands out. He took a good look at them. Then he grabbed her head and inspected her hair. He was conducting a cleanliness inspection, like her teacher used to do every morning while she was still in school. What would her owner do if he found that she failed the inspection? He would probably whip her. Her owner had finished inspecting her hair and now twirled his hand in a circle, he probably wanted her to turn around.

"Bring me my trench coat", ordered her owner after she had turned around. Maka quickly went to fetch his trench coat from the coathanger. He got dressed and ordered her to follow to him. Maka followed him out of the door. She walked two steps behind him. After a five minute walk, they arrived at small shop, a bakery, to be exact. Maka was surprised to see a familiar face standing behind the counter: Meme. Apparently her owner trusted her with the register.

"Hi Maka", said Meme. Maka wanted to return the greeting, but she saw how her owner clenched his hands into fists. Meme must have insulted him somehow.

"I demand to speak with your mistress", said Dr. Evans, waving his fist at Meme. How did he know that Meme's owner was a woman?

"Mistress is out at the moment", replied Meme.

"When will she be back?", asked Dr. Evans.

"In an hour or so", answered Meme. Maka knew that if she talked to her owner like that, she would not like the consequences, and once Dr. Evans spoke to Meme's owner, Meme would get it. Dr. Evans then turned to leave the bakery. Her owner seemed to be calming down with each step he took away from the bakery.

"How comes this impudent slave knows you?", asked her owner.

"We used to be neighbors", answered Maka.

"Anyway, that was the bakery where you will buy my bread" said her owner.

"Yes master", said Maka. After a while they arrived at a butcher shop. A free person was watching the register.

"Good morning Dr. Evans", greeted the shopkeeper.

"Good morning. I would like one kilogram of lamb fillet", said Dr. Evans.

"A moment please", said the shopkeeper, who immediately went to work, "I see that you got yourself a slave".

"Yeah, this is Maka", said Dr. Evans, pointing at Maka.

"And, she's a good deal?", asked the shopkeeper, now weighting the filet.

"She's been screwing up some of the simplest task, like making tea", said Dr. Evans.

"How does one mess up tea?", asked the shopkeeper.

"She ripped the teabag open and poured the tea into the cup", said Dr. Evans.

"Wow. Anyway,", said the butcher, putting the packaged meat on the counter, "This will be five thousand five-hundred sixty seven dollars".

"Here you go" said her owner, handing him a bill. The shopkeeper took the bill and gave him the change, in the form of four bills and several coins.

"Have a good day. Please come again", said the shopkeeper.

"Thanks, have a good day, too", said her owner. He took a bag out of a pocket of his coat and handed it to Maka, then he handed her the meat, which Maka put into the bag. He left the store and Maka followed him. The houses were starting to become denser, they must be walking towards the center of the city. Maka could see several other people walking, all going around their daily tasks, a good number of them slaves. Maka wondered how many slaves there were in this country. They definitively weren't an uncommon sight. After a further while they had reached what seemed to be the town square, and there was a market, the air being filled with the shouting of merchants praising their goods. In the center was a ornate fountain. It consisted of a castle with two figures standing on it.

The castle consisted of several towers, sixteen to be exact, all with conical roofs. Twelve of these towers were arranged in a cross pattern, with the smallest towers being the outermost, and larger towers in the center. The two main towers, however, were part of a dash through the cross. This dash consisted of four towers, all being taller than the ones from the cross. The outermost towers of the cross had large candles going diagonally out of them. These candles didn't have a flame, whoever designed the fountain had decided that water should come out instead, which Maka found to be a rather interesting choice. There was a stylized skull on all the towers, except for the small ones. This stylized skull consisted of a circle with three holes, two large ones for the eyes and a smaller one for the nose, and three long teeth. A lower jaw was not there. The castle had two entrances, one on each side. The entrances were decorated with three large skulls. Two skulls each were framing the entrances, with a third placed right on top of the entrances. The teeth of this central skull were spaced wide apart, so if the castle was real, visitors would have to go through the teeth.

The figures on top of the castle, they were balanced on the two main towers, seemed to be fighting. The right figure was a large, ragged, one legged creature, with spikes growing out of it's body. It had two arms, with cuboid hands, holding a scythe in its right hand, readying a swing at the other figure. The other figure was a humanoid wearing a suit. It had a spike growing out of it's mouth. There were countless eyes on it's body. Between the two eyes one would expect on a face, it had a third eye. It also had eyes on its fingers and hands. Water was coming out of both figures' mouths. Maka wondered what this fountain represented.

On three edges of the square, merchants had build up their stands. Her owner was currently buying apples at a stand that was selling fruit. On the far side of the square were a pillory, a gibbet and a woman, wearing a black dress and a black hood, who was putting wood on a pile of wood with a large wooden pillar in the middle. They were apparently getting ready to execute someone. Her owner was busy bartering with the merchant and the executioner was putting hay on the stake as kindling.


	31. A witch burning

Then two police officers dragged a woman towards the stake. The woman was wearing a dress with a white polka dot pattern on black, the sleeves, however, where gray. Said dress was extremely short, not even covering her knees. There was a large bow attached to the back of the dress. Her long white hair was covered by a large brown witch hat, with a toads face on the front. Her hands were tied behind her back. A man in with blue hair in an elegant black suit followed them. Dr. Evans was eating an apple. The police officers helped the executioner tie the woman to the stake. The man in the black suit was getting ready for a speech.

"Rejoice, citizens of New Death City, for today I, the great and powerful Dr. Blackstar, will bring justice, as it is my holy duty. This witch, Eruka Frog, who has been a great plague on the land, will today be purified in flames. Once nothing is left of her but a pile of ash, life in New Death City and in the whole of New Nevada will be safer", said Dr. Blackstar, even thought he wasn't shouting, he easily drowned out the crowd. Now that he paused for breath, the crowd's chorus of "Burn the witch! Burn the witch!" could be heard. Eruka had broken out in tears.

"Countless are the evils that have been brought over us by this foul witch. Poisoning the water, abducting our children, destroying our crops. Today she will pay for her crimes. She will suffer like her victims suffered as she boiled them alive before she ate them. She will suffer as the starving farmers suffered, after she had brought on a drought. She will suffer for all of her crimes, for all of her countless crimes", continued Dr. Blackstar.

"Today, the death she so rightfully deserves shall serve as an example for all the other witches, that they'll meet the same fate as her. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday they will burn at the stake, like her. Mark my words, witches. I will not rest, I will not hesitate in my pursuit to purify this country of your foul influences. Someday, the last witch will die on the stake. I do not know when this day will come, for there a many witches out there, hiding, poisoning our water, abducting our children, destroying our crops, but today we take a step towards a witch free future. A bright future. A new age of prosperity will begin once the last witch has drawn her last breath. Their ashes will fertilize our soil, and their death will free our souls. Once the witches have been exterminated, peace and prosperity will come over the land. For they are the plague of the land, the parasite choking our people, a cancer in our midst. For each dead witch, our breath will become easier, our lives better, our children healthier"

"We shall not suffer a witch to live. And we promised that we wouldn't, today we will make good on this promise. This promise, which we made when our country was founded. Today we will prove that we won't tolerate witches in our country. Light the stake!", ordered Dr. Blackstar.

"No, please don't! I'm begging you!", pleaded Eruka as the executioner put her torch to the stake. The hay burned, the fire quickly reached Eruka's dress. Eruka's screaming became incomprehensible, the pain she was going trough must be immense. The whole stake was burning now, and Eruka was completely engulfed in flames. The crowd loved the show, their chorus now completely drowning out Eruka's screams of pain. Maka found it amazing how long it took for Eruka to die. It was still possible to see her move and to hear her screaming, if one listened carefully. Dr. Evans had finished eating his apple and looked at Dr. Blackstar. He seemed to be waiting for the execution to be over. He probably wanted to talk to Dr. Blackstar, who had sat down on a bench and calmly watched the fire. After ten minutes, the city hall had a clock on it's side, Eruka finally stopped screaming, it couldn't be long until she was dead now. After a few more minutes, she had stopped moving as well. The crowd's shouting started to die down, now that Eruka was dead, there was only a controlled, safe fire burning, nothing especially spectacular, and they resumed their usual activities, the shouting of merchants filled the air once again. Dr. Evans went up to Dr. Blackstar.

"Guess that witch finally got what she deserved", said Dr. Evans.

"She was a small fish", said Dr. Blackstar, "too easy for a pro like me, you could say insultingly easy"

"Oh, how was her defense?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She defended herself. Most witches do", said Dr. Blackstar, "but you should have seen how shoddily she defended herself, my butler could have won the case"

"You sure?", chuckled Dr. Evans.

"Yes, her guilty verdict was pretty much a certainty, I could have stayed home and still I would have won", said Dr. Blackstar, "I just wish for a witch case with a competent defense, so that I could prove my godlike abilities to the people".

"You still coming to dinner tonight?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world", said Dr. Blackstar, "I see you've bought a slave. Can she cook?"

"Yeah, her cooking is kinda acceptable", said Dr. Evans, "She does screw up simple stuff like tea, though"

"I'm sure that can be cured by a sound trashing", said Dr. Blackstar.

"That's what I did", said Dr. Evans.

"Anyway, see you later, I have some stuff to take care of", said Dr. Blackstar as he turned to leave.


	32. Preparing dinner

"See you", said Dr. Evans. He then left the town square and went into a store a short distance from the towns square. The store sold a variety of foods that Maka didn't even know the name of. Some of these were fruits, for example a yellow curved fruit with several black spots on it. Then there was a shelf filled with spices that Maka didn't recognize. Everything in this store must be very expensive. It would be best if she didn't touch anything.

"Good day, Dr. Evans, sir", greeted the sales clerk at the register, a black haired female slave.

"I would like some pasteurized milk", said Dr. Evans.

"How much, sir?", asked the slave.

"Four bottles" said Dr. Evans.

"Of course, sir", said the slave, as she got four bottles of milk from a closet behind the counter, "That would be ten thousand dollars". Maka wondered what pasteurized milk was, it looked like normal milk.

"Here you go", said Dr. Evans as he handed her the money.

"Thank you, sir. Come again, sir", said the slave, as Dr. Evans left the store.

"Always buy the milk last", said Dr. Evans after they had left the store, "it must remain cold".

"Yes, master. Does that mean I should put it into this could closet in your kitchen, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes, and that 'cold closet' is called a refrigerator", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans seemed to have gotten all the items he wanted to buy, except for bread. But he didn't go back for bread, he went home. He ordered Maka to but the groceries in their appropriate places, so Maka put the meat and the milk in the refrigerator, and the apples in a bowl on the counter. Then she took the laundry out of the washing machine and put it on the laundry rack. Dr. Evans saw this and ordered her to build up the laundry rack outside. Maka obeyed. She hung the laundry on the rack, and after she had finished, she went back inside to prepare her owner's lunch. In the afternoon she cleaned ironed the clothes and cleaned several rooms in the house. Then she started to work on the three course dinner.

"Be careful to make the pie symmetrical or you will be punished", said her owner.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She couldn't understand why symmetry was so important. She took great care when she prepared the pie, carefully laying the apples in a symmetrical pattern, before she covered them symmetrically. Then it came to her that she didn't know how to operate her owner's oven. She assumed it to be the the lower part of the stove. But how to turn it on? Maybe with one of the two other knobs. Maybe she should ask her owner. Maybe she could break a plate to get his attention. Maka immediately dismissed this horrible idea, it would only get her into trouble. She decided to go and ask him. She found him reading in his living room.

"Master?", said Maka.

"What is it?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I don't know how to operate your oven, Master", said Maka.

"Turn the left dial to the picture with two solid lines and the right one between one hundred and fifty and two hundred", explained her owner.

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She went back into the kitchen and did as he had explained it. She concluded that the numbers must represent temperature. Maka then went to prepare the soups. Later, she took the pie out of the oven after it's crust had turned golden brown and she started to prepare the lamb fillet, she chopped it into eight equal pieces. She took care to make the pieces as symmetrical as possible, her owner hadn't mentioned anything about the fillet having to be symmetrical, but she definitively didn't want to get a whipping. She put the fillets into two frying pans and put them on the stove. She then noticed that there were only four plates, all of which already occupied. Where should she prepare the fettuccine? She would have to free up a plate. The soups were basically already done, they only needed to stay warm until they were served. They would stay warm in the stove. She took the carrot soup, since it was the soup that had to stay warm the least amount of time, and put it into the stove. She set the temperature to a little under one hundred, because that would be really low. But even if she had turned the stove off, it was still warm enough to keep the soup hot. At seven o clock, she could hear the first guest arriving.

"Rejoice, for it's me, Dr. Blackstar", yelled Dr. Blackstar.

"Yes, I know", yelled Dr. Evans back.

"Did you tell Puer Necis the time in military?", asked Dr. Blackstar, "You know what happened last time"

"Don't worry, he'll show up in time. Will be an hour until dinner is ready anyway", Dr. Evans. Maka wondered who Puer Necis was, the name definitively sounded intimidating. Dr. Evans and Dr. Blackstar went into the living room and began to talk, apparently about their respective jobs. Maka turned the fillets around. After a while, another guest arrived.

"Welcome, Dr. Stein, welcome, Dr. Albarn", said Dr. Evans.

"Good evening Dr. Evans", said both guests in a chorus.

"How's your research going?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It's progressing. I've got some problems, need a rare type of test subject"

"Maybe you should try to make your experiment survivable, then you could hire free test subjects", said Dr. Evans, "Where do you even get all that money from?"

"The usual", answered one of the guests.

"How, you don't have a job or wealthy family members?", questioned Dr. Evans.

"There are rich people who are interested in my research, they give me money", explained one of the guests. Then a fourth guest arrived.

"Ah, Puer, glad you could make it", said Dr. Evans.

"Hi Baldie", said the other guests, either Dr. Stein or Dr. Albarn.

"My name's not Baldie!", said Baldie, probably Necis.

"Then why are you bald?", asked the second guest.

"Well, your name's not Redhead", retorted Necis.

"Could you cut it out, you're behaving like children", said Dr. Evans, "I suggest we open up a bottle of wine". Then they started to argue about what kind of wine they wanted. They apparently had sampled wines that Maka had never even heard of. The argument became quite vocal, and when another guest arrived, Maka couldn't hear his name. But apparently the guest had brought a bottle of wine himself, so they decided to drink this wine.


	33. Serving wine

"Maka!", called Dr. Evans. Maka was didn't wanted to leave the food unobserved, she was afraid of messing it up. On the other hand, she didn't really have a choice, so she hurried into the anteroom. She stopped in shock once she entered. This guest was a no other than Dr. Eisenberg. He had brought his assistant and his bodyguard along. Apparently he was afraid of assassination. Maka wondered if it would be possible to murder him tonight. His bodyguard made a direct attempt on his life infeasible. She would have to poison him. Screwhead and the redhead were also present, along with what appeared to be the symetrical bald man.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"Serve this bottle of wine", ordered her owner.

"Pass auf, dass sie den Wein nicht vergiftet", said Dr. Eisenberg to his assistant.

"Yes, master", said Maka as she took the bottle.

"Jawohl, mein Herr", said Dr. Eisenberg's assistant.

"I don't think that's necessary", said Dr. Evans.

"Trust me, it is", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"And why?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I met that slave of yours under really unfortunate circumstances", explained Dr. Eisenberg. Maka couldn't hear the rest of the conversation and wondered what Dr. Evans thought of as not really necessary. Once she was in the kitchen, she wondered what she could use to poison Dr. Eisenberg. It would have to be something tasteless and deadly. Then she noticed that his assistant had followed her. What was she trying to do? Maka would have to get rid of her if she wanted to poison Dr. Eisenberg.

"Shouldn't you be standing with your master, to see if he needs something", said Maka in an attempt to get rid of her.

"He told me to watch you so that you can't poison the wine", explained Dr. Eisenbergs assistant. So Dr. Eisenberg was a step ahead of her. She would have to wait for another change to murder him. Or maybe she could trick his assistant and slip a suitable poison into Eisenberg's wine. But she didn't have anything suitable to poison Dr. Eisenberg. Her owner appeared to be a law abiding citizen, he wouldn't have any illegal chemicals in his house, and most substances that make good poison were probably illegal. Maybe he had rat poison. Good rat poison is tasteless, odorless and slow acting in a lethal concentration. If she could slip a sufficient amount of it into Dr. Eisenberg's drink, he would die. But if her owner had rat poison in his house, where would he keep it? It would be unlikely that he kept it in his kitchen, it was probably in one of the junk rooms. But if she the kitchen and searched one of the junk rooms, Dr. Eisenberg's assistant would get suspicious. Maybe Dr. Eisenberg's assistant would aid in his assassination. On the other hand, Maka had seen her carrying a handgun in Dr. Eisenberg's presence, so he probably trusted her a lot. Which meant that he most likely treated her well. She probably wouldn't help Maka kill her owner.

Maka took several wine glasses out of the cupboard, but didn't know where to find a corkscrew. She started to look through the cupboards.

"Here, use this", said Dr. Eisenberg's assistant, handing Maka a corkscrew. The corkscrew was a fold out from a handle, that contained several other things, most very thin. It was some kind of versatile tool.

"Thanks", replied Maka as she opened the wine bottle, "what's your name, by the way?"

"Vanessa", replied Dr. Eisenberg's assistant, as Maka filled the glasses with the smooth red liquid. She then put the glasses on a serving tablet and carried them to the living room, where she could hear the guests talking. Maka handed each of them a glass. Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard got out a cup. Maka wondered why. Then Dr. Eisenberg handed his glass to his bodyguard, who filled a small quantity of wine into his cup before giving the glass back. He drank it, sloshing it a bit around his mouth before swallolling it. Dr. Eisenberg hadn't started to drink his wine yet.

"Bitter", said Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard.

"Wenn du das auf einer Weinprobe gesagt hättest, würden sie dich rausschmeißen", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"Scheint nicht vergiftet zu sein", said Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard.

"Gut", said Dr. Eisenberg before he began to drink the wine. Maka went back into the kitchen in order to check up on the food before setting the table. Assassinating Dr. Eisenberg would be very difficult, his bodyguard also tasted his food. Was there anyway she could kill him? She would have to rule out poisoning him. The only way to assassinate him without getting caught would be to make it look like an accident. But how would she do that? Maybe she could put something in his meal so that he would choke on it. It would have to be something that could easily be inserted into the food. But that would only work if Dr. Eisenberg doesn't properly chew his food. And even then, Screwhead had talked about test subjects, since he experimented on humans, he would know a lot about medicine, so we would perhaps be able to save Dr. Eisenberg should he choke on his food. There was no risk free way to murder Dr. Eisenberg tonight. At least not now, maybe an opportunity would present itself tonight. Maybe Dr. Eisenberg came by her owner's house regularly. But considering Dr. Eisenberg's line of work, that would be unlikely. She would have to plan his assassination carefully and then strike. But she mustn't loose sight of her actual goal, to escape, Dr. Eisenberg's death would not magically set her free.

"You can't set the table like this for such a formal occasion", said Vanessa.

"Then how should I set it?", asked Maka.

"Dinner fork, next to the plate, dessert fork and spoon over the plate, soup plate on the plate, dinner knife and soup spoon next to the plate", said Vanessa. Maka followed her instructions, Vanessa telling her which goes rigth and which goes left. If Vanessa hadn't intervened, Maka would have gotten into trouble.


	34. Serving the appetizer

"Josef, Louis, welcome", said Dr. Evans, the last two guests must have arrived.

"When will dinner be ready, I'm starving?", asked one of the guest.

"At eight o'clock", answered Dr. Evans.

"I could eat an elephant", said the hungry guest.

"You could challenge Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard to a duel to the death and then eat his heart", suggested the other, apparently psychotic guest. Maka had heard his voice before. This man must be someone she had met once.

"You crazy, that guy will rip my head off", said the hungry guest.

"He never ripped someone's head off, that's an exaggerated version of a story where he snapped someone's neck", said the psychotic guest. Was he Dr. Howell? No, Dr. Howell's voice was deeper. Who was this?

"You never normally complain about hunger, what's different today?", inquired Dr. Evans.

"Some people intercepted my landlady's slave and stole my breakfast", said the hungry guest, "Then I didn't have time to eat lunch because the bank is troubled by the recent development of the conflict between East and West Wyoming". This man knew something about the war. Even though there was no doubt that West Wyoming would win, it may be better to postpone her escape until the war was over. On the other hand, it was her duty as a citizen of West Wyoming to serve her homeland, postponing her escape to wait out the war would be a form of treason against her homeland. A very mild form, but still.

"Why did they steal your breakfast?", asked the psychotic guest.

"That's strange, they told me I was under arrest", explained the hungry guest.

"If you need a lawyer, I'm your man", said Dr. Evans.

"They were dressed as civilians, so I asked for their warrant and badges"

"Let me guess, they didn't show any, talking about how precise their organization is working and that mistakes are impossible", said the psychotic guest.

"How do you know?", asked the hungry one.

"I have dealt with that organization before", explained the psychotic one.

"What happened then?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I got dressed and left", said the hungry one, "some guy who was overseeing the arrest told me some things, but I didn't listen"

"You could have murdered him and claimed self defense", said the psychotic guest.

"It's a wonder no one has killed you yet", said the hungry guest.

"Someone tried to poison me once, but I suspected it and switched the glasses around", said the psychotic guest, sounding contemplative, "his last words were 'how did you know?'. I wonder why so many people want me dead"

"Yeah, it's a shame that some people are after law abiding arms dealers", said the hungry one.

"Don't speak about my profession like that, brother, I paid for your college education", said the psychotic one.

"All I'm trying to say is that your profession is likely to make people hate you", said the hungry one.

"But I make interesting friends as well", retorted the psychotic one.

"Is the meal done?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka turned around, he was standing behind her.

"The carrot soup is ready, but the fillet still needs some time, master.",said Maka.

"Good. Serve the carrot soup", ordered Dr. Evans before he left the kitchen

"Yes, master", said Maka. She took the soup bowl out of the stove and put it one the counter. She got took the soup plates from the table and filled them with soup before she put them back on the table, one by one. A short while later, Dr. Evans and his guests took their seats. Dr. Evans sat at the head end of the table, opposite of him sat Dr. Eisenberg. The symmetrical bald man sat to the left of Dr. Evans, next to him were Screwhead and the redhead. To Dr. Evans' right sat , followed by the two guests who had arrived last. Dr. Evans ordered Maka to come closer to the table.

"This is Maka, my slave", explained Dr. Evans.

"I hope she can cook", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Her collar is slightly of center", said the symmetrical bald man, "I know that most of you don't share my sense for aesthetics, but she should be punished". Maka adjusted her collar, Dr. Evans just laughed. She was glad that she wasn't owned by the symmetrical bald man, he would have beaten her to death by now, no wonder he goes trough so many slaves. The guest to the right of Dr. Blackstar turned around and grabbed her chest. Maka's first instinct was to slap him, but if she did that, there was no telling what her owner would do to her.

"Certainly lacking in some departments", said the guest who had just groped her, while Maka was still in shock. She took a step back.

"Stay where you are", ordered Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, taking a step forward, reentering the guest's reach, who immediately poked at her chest. She wished she could be somewhere else. It occurred to her in horror that this guy only needed her owner's permission to rape her. What if he asked her owner, would her owner agree? He already seemed to have permission to grope her. Maka only hoped that he either wouldn't ask her owner or that her owner would say no, but why would her owner put her comfort over the enjoyment of his guests.

"I have seen her somewhere before", said the guest's brother. Maka found the guest's face familiar, they had definitively met earlier. Maybe he was the intermediary who had sorted them. No, that guy's hair was brown, this man's hair was completely black.

"She reminds me of someone", said the redhead.

"That girl you...", said Screwhead.

"Shut up!", interrupted the redhead.

"Could we just start eating?", asked Dr. Eisenberg.

"Enjoy your meal", said Dr. Evans and everybody started eating.

"Can I go back to the kitchen now,master? I need to look after the fillet", asked Maka.

"Yes", answered Dr. Evans. Maka retreated to the kitchen, glad to be out of the guest's reach. But where had she seen that other guy before? Maka wondered, while she was flipping the fillet, if he was one the people who had handled and sold her. No, she had seen him before she was captured. Then she remembered where she had seen him, he was the traveling salesman who had come into her village once. So he wasn't really interested in selling stuff to the villager's, he was smuggling weapons.


	35. The main course

The fillets were almost done, soon she would have to serve them, and get near to that one guest again. Maybe she should talk to Vanessa, who was still watching her to make sure that she didn't poison the food, she may know something that could help her.

"Do I have to let them grope me?", asked Maka, not knowing what to expect for an answer.

"You're lucky you only tried to step away. If you had tried to grab his hand, you would have gotten a whipping", said Vanessa, "a severe one, too".

"How often does this happen to you?", asked Maka.

"A whipping? Very rarely", said Vanessa.

"No, that someone gropes you", said Maka.

"Never, Dr. Eisenberg doesn't allow it", said Vanessa.

"Why doesn't Dr. Evans think the same way?", lamented Maka.

"It's not because Dr. Eisenberg is a kind man, he had one of his other slaves whipped after she tried to shake off a guest who was groping her"

"Then why doesn't he allow people to grope you?", asked Maka.

"Because I'm valuable. You should take the fillet from of the stove", said Vanessa.

"What if Dr. Evans lets one of his guest rape me?", asked Maka.

"It would not be rape, since he would do it with your master's permission", said Vanessa. Maka took the fillet of the stove, now on the verge of tears, barely able to stop herself from crying. She went into the dining room where Dr. Evans and his guests were chatting, having finished the soup.

"Should I serve the main course now, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans. Maka went to collect the soup plates, taking care not to get near the guest who groped her.

"Her collar is off center again", complained the symmetrical bald man, "she should definitively be punished". Maka adjusted her collar

"How", asked Dr. Evans.

"Tear two of her fingernails out", said the symmetrical bald man, "the ring finger on each hand".

"I'll consider it", said Dr. Evans to Maka's horror. Nobody had ever torn out one of her fingernails, but she still knew that it would hurt like hell. She hoped that he wouldn't tear her fingernails out. When she got close to the guest who groped her, he didn't grope her again. Was he trying to lull her into a false sense of security. On the other hand, that was not really necessary for him. If he wanted to rape her, he would just have to ask her owner. Maybe he would even ask. Hopefully Dr. Evans would say no. She took the soup plates and put them into the sink, then she took all the main plates and put the fillet on them, then a pile of fettuccine next to it. She finished of by pouring some of the mushroom soup over it. Then she carried the plates into to the table, one by one.

"Josef", said the brother of the guest who had groped her, both guests who sat next to him turned to him, "If your assistant helped, the main course would be on the table sooner".

"No", said Dr. Eisenberg as Maka put Dr. Evans' plate down in front of Dr. Evans. Next she put down the symmetrical bald man's plate.

"This is asymmetrical and disgusting. That slave of yours needs to be punished severely", shouted the symmetrical bald man.

"I think you should see a therapist", said Screwhead.

"I can assure you, my mind is in perfect condition. The world is just wrong", said the symmetrical bald man.

"That's a dead giveaway that you should see a therapist", said Screwhead, "If you'd stop flipping over symmetry, you would save lots of money, I bet the slaves at the slave market already know and fear you".

"Hey, Maka, is that true?", asked the redhead. Maka didn't know whether she should lie or tell the truth. If she told the truth, the symmetrical bald man would get angry.

"I don't know, sir", said Maka.

"What do you mean you don't know, Soul bought you at a slave market, didn't he?", said the redhead.

"Yes, sir, but I couldn't talk to anyway there", said Maka.

"Why not?", asked the redhead.

"She obviously wasn't allowed to", said Dr. Blackstar. Maka gave Dr. Eisenberg his fillet. She had picked the smallest one for him. It obviously wasn't much smaller than the others, she would get in trouble for that, but still noticeable, if only barely. Then she gave the rest of the guests their meal. When she made her way back into the kitchen, the guest who had previously groped her grabbed her butt.

"She's lacking in several departments", said the guest. Maka took a big step in the direction of the kitchen to get out of his reach. Would her owner order her to get back again? Did she just do something that got her into trouble? Her owner remained silent. Maka went back into the kitchen.

"Maka", called her owner. She went back into the dining room.

"Yes, master?", said Maka.

"Serve some wine. There is a rack with bottles under the stairs in the basement", said her owner.

"Which one do you want, master?", asked Maka.

"Just pick one", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. In the basement she indeed found the rack of bottles in the described location. She didn't know which one to pick, but maybe Vanessa, who was still watching her, knew.

"Which one would you pick?", asked Maka.

"That's your job, isn't it?", answered Vanessa, "Just pick one, what's the worst thing that could happen?". So Maka brought the bottle back up, in the hope that she did everything right.

"Show me what you picked", ordered her owner. She handed him the bottle after confirming the order.

"How does this sound: 'Florida ice wine, year 109 after the revolution'?", he asked his guests. Most nodded in agreement.

"It's settled then, serve this wine", he ordered.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she went into the kitchen, took Vanessa's corkscrew, which was still lying on the counter and opened the bottle. She went back into the dining room and poured the wine into everybody's cup. Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard tasted the wine in the same manner he had already tasted the wine earlier. He didn't comment on the taste, maybe Dr. Eisenberg had gotten mad about his last remark. Maka went back into the kitchen.


	36. Dessert

"Where do you think you are going", said Dr. Evans.

"Into the kitchen, master, to start cleaning the dishes from the appetizer", said Maka.

"I didn't ask, Louis did", said Dr. Evans, as the guest next to Dr. Eisenberg waved, "but you may do that". So the arms dealer's name was Louis. As Maka began to wash the dishes, she wondered if Vanessa knew something that could be useful for her escape. Certainly, after all, she dealt with slavery regularly. But she also seemed to be very content with her situation, it was unlikely that she was also planning to escape. But how likely was it that Vanessa would help Maka escape, and how far would she go in helping her. Maybe Vanessa would give her advice more valuable than "Your life's not worth attempted flight" and tell her something useful. But what if Vanessa reported Maka to Dr. Evans. She would have to talk to Vanessa in a way that didn't convey her true intentions.

"Say, how does Dr. Eisenberg treat you?", asked Maka.

"Can't complain", said Vanessa, "and how does Dr. Evans treat you?"

"I guess normally", said Maka, "but tell me, what sort of work does Dr. Eisenberg make you do?".

"Accounting, scheduling, ordering materials, letter writing...", said Vanessa.

"Wow, what kind of materials do you order?", asked Maka.

"The stuff that he needs for business", said Vanessa, "Weapons, ammo, food, slave collars...".

"I wonder who designed them to tighten when pulled", said Maka, hoping to move the discussion to the topic of the collars.

"Yeah, I hate that feature, too", said Vanessa.

"Who was that sadistic mastermind, anyway?", asked Maka.

"Some guy named Alan Stanley", said Vanessa, "he invented a variety of other stuff, too, like foot cuffs with a razor sharp edge on the inside"

"Sounds scary", said Maka, "but why did his collars become the norm?".

"Because their design makes them easy to damage and hard to break", said Vanessa, "I once lost the key to a slave collar of someone whose ransom had been paid. It took forever to get that thing off". Maka wanted to ask what they had used to get the collar of, but if she asked that, Vanessa would probably catch on to what Maka was trying to do. Maybe they used a normal file, or maybe some sort of power tool.

"A truly ingenious invention", said Maka, unable to hide the distress in her voice. Vanessa had just confirmed Lefty's account, it would be very hard to break this damn thing. Maka had finished washing the dishes and started to dry them. Maybe she could get more information out of Vanessa.

"Who produces these collars?", asked Maka.

"You're showing a lot of interest in these thing", said Vanessa, "You should just accept that you're wearing one and that that's not going to change anytime soon". Vanessa was on to her. Hopefully she wouldn't tell Dr. Evans or anybody else. What should she do? Kill Vanessa? Not feasible, she would get caught. Repeat her question? Try to bribe Vanessa?

"I just want to know who makes these things", said Maka.

"And I'm not telling", said Vanessa.

"Why not?", asked Maka.

"Because I don't actually know, I usually purchase them trough Louis K. or some other arms dealer", said Vanessa. Maka was amazed that Vanessa actually told her that. But it wasn't really valuable information, unless she started to work in that business herself one day. On the other hand, she would rather starve than take on such a profession.

"Louis K?", asked Maka.

"The guy sitting next to Dr. Eisenberg", said Vanessa.

"I mean, what's his last name?", asked Maka.

"K", said Vanessa.

"Doesn't the K stand for anything?", asked Maka.

"Don't know", said Vanessa, "must be something really stupid, though"

"Maka", called Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka as she entered the kitchen.

"Serve the dessert now", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She collected the plates and served the cake, taking care to cut it symmetrically. She didn't want to upset the symmetrical bald man, out of fear that her owner decided to actually follow his advice.

"She can do some things right", said the symmetrical bald man upon examining his plate, "I'd still recommend you sell her to a fuel farm, though". Her owner probably wouldn't listen to him, but alone the prospect of working on a fuel farm scared her.

"On the subject of fuel farms, I once took a tour of one", said the guest who had groped her, "they made me wear some thick protective suit. It took half an hour to put that thing on, and it was extremely hot in it, I sweated so much, a hour more and I would have drowned in my own sweat".

"That would be a nice way to die", said Louis K, "Here lies Josef K, drowned in his own sweat"

"Anyway, all the slaves were dressed in rags", continued Josef K, "You could see how long they had been there by their clothing and the number of growths on their body. One of the guards got yelled at for smoking".

"Does anyone know anything about that black cat with the witch hat?", asked Louis K.

"It's asymmetrical", said the symmetrical bald man.

"Someone put a witch hat on it, and it hasn't fallen of yet", said Screwhead. Maka didn't know why she listened to this inane conversation, she should be cleaning the dishes, or in fact anything else.

"It's one of the stray cats my landlady's slave feeds every night", said Josef K, "today, she didn't feed them, so they meowed so much that I gave them a fish".

"Why didn't she feed the cats as usual?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"She was being punished because she failed to bring me my breakfast", said Josef K.

"Why, that sounds like it wasn't her fault", said Dr. Blackstar, "that's if you told your landlady the same thing you told us".

"My landlady doesn't tolerate failure", said Josef K.

"I bet the rents all get paid on time", said Dr. Evans.

"Speaking of slaves", said Josef K, "Say Soul, may I have intercourse with your slave?"


	37. After dessert wine

He had actually asked. He wanted to rape her. What should she do? Maybe her owner would say no. Please say no. Please say no. What would happen if he said yes? Josef K would rape her.

Would she be able to prevent it? She would have to make a run for it. Would that work? Hard to tell. She would not be able to take anything, so she would probably get caught or starve to death. She would have to cooperate. She felt extremely powerless, knowing that only a single word separated her from getting raped, and that, if this word were to be issued, she would have to cooperate with her rapist or throw her life away. She didn't know what would be the right choice.

"I got my hands on a shipment of rare European wine", said Louis K "twenty barrels, going to keep one for myself and auction the rest in about three weeks. Think you guys may be interested".

"Swell", said Dr. Evans, "What wine is it?".

"Ten barrels are from northern Italy, ten years old, five from southern France, seven years old, three from West Germany, eight years old, and the rest from Spain, eleven years old"

"Wow, how much did that impressive collection cost?", asked Dr. Evans. Louis K had distracted them. While it probably wasn't deliberate, it might prevent her rape. Maybe she could keep them distracted long enough to keep Josef K from raping her.

"Well, I payed on average one thousand Franc for each barrel", said Louis K.

"Speaking of wine, our glasses are empty", observed the symmetrical bald man.

"Maka, bring another bottle of wine", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and went down into the basement. What wine to pick? A completely viable strategy would be to get them drunk. Then they would be unable to rape her. Or maybe they would decide to do it together. Maka grabbed at one of the bottles in the rack and looked at the label. There was a picture of slightly rotted grapes on it.

"Wait, you can't serve that wine. Richard's allergic to noble rot", said Vanessa.

"Who's Richard?", asked Maka.

"Dr. Eisenberg's bodyguard. If he goes down because of the wine, everyone will assume you wanted to murder Dr. Eisenberg. Then you'd get tortured and killed", said Vanessa.

"Thanks for warning me", said Maka as she put the wine back, "Than which wine should I take".

"How about this one?", asked Vanessa, after she had grabbed another bottle.

"I don't really know anything about wine", said Maka, "but the picture is nice". The picture was a drawing of a grape. Maka took the wine from Vanessa and carried the bottle back up, where her owner examined it before asking his guest, who nodded in agreement. Then Maka went to serve the bottle. She wondered what they had talked about while she was downstairs. Maybe her owner had given Josef K permission to rape her. Maybe Josef K had forgotten about it. Maybe they had all forgotten about it. But that was probably nothing but wishful thinking. If he wanted to rape her, and he wanted to, he probably wouldn't forget. But maybe he hadn't gotten permission yet. While it was unlikely, Maka was not about to pass up that chance. She would try all that she could to prevent Josef K from raping her.

Maka carried the opened wine bottle into the kitchen and filled all of the glasses, nervously watching Josef K. He took a sip of his wine, then another.

"Say Josef, what do you think about the war in Wyoming?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"The new Confederates started an offensive last week, which turned out to be a huge success. Some installations in which the bank had shares in where lost, causing massive finacial damage", said Josef K, "I've been working overtime for a week now, just to contain the mess".

"Any other interesting conflicts?", asked Dr. Evans.

"There's a slave revolt in northern Michigan", said Louis K, "started as a dispute over horses". Maybe Maka could join the slave revolt. On the other hand, getting there would be much more difficult than just returning to her homeland. But fighting for the abolition of slavery would be a very noble cause, almost as noble as fighting for her homeland.

"How did they start a war over horses", asked Josef K.

"The revolt was started by a horse trader, Michael Kohlhaas", explained Louis K, "Some aristocrat stole his horses".

"Couldn't he just have sued the aristocrat?", asked Dr. Evans.

"He tried, but the aristocrat's relatives prevented it", said Louis K, "When his wife tried to hand in the documents for him, they killed her".

"I guess that's when he lost it", said Screwhead.

"He then gave his slaves weapons and started by ransacking a fuel farm", said Louis K. Maka followed the story about the revolt with interest. Maybe she could start one herself, although it would be a bit more difficult for her than for Kohlhaas. Josef K also seemed to have forgotten about raping her.

"Why a fuel farm?", asked the redhead.

"Because slaves on a fuel farm are so miserable from the irritants and carcinogens in the plants that they are ridiculously easy to push into rebellion", explained Dr. Eisenberg, "So if you ever need a bunch of completely untrained soldiers, attack a fuel farm".

"He then started to destroy the aristocrat's assets, pillaging and burning any settlement that he happened across", said Louis K, "I've been supplying him with weapons, and he gave me the captured population of those villages he came across". So the revolting slaves were enslaving other people themselves. They knowingly inflicted their suffering on others. Michael Kohlhaas must be a cruel, heartless man and a brilliant demagogue if he could inspire former slaves to themselves become slavers. Maka would never support this cruel warlord. In fact, she had a lower opinion of Michael Kohlhaas than of Dr. Eisenberg. While Dr. Eisenberg was a slaver, he could at least honestly say that he didn't know what it was like to be a slave. Kohlhaas, or at least his men, knew it exactly and was still inflicting it on others.

"Does he do business fairly", asked Josef K. Maka wondered whether Josef K had forgotten about raping her or if he had gotten permission while Maka was fetching wine.


	38. Tales of exotic places and lost wonders

"Yeah, pretty much. Tried some old tricks, but those didn't work", said Louis K.

"If he tried to trick you, then why do you continue doing business with him?", asked Dr. Evans.

"There's a silent agreement that states that it's okay to screw over newbies in certain ways", said Dr. Eisenberg, "but experienced people wouldn't fall for these tricks".

"Strange business", commented Dr. Blackstar.

"Anyway, how's your fight for justice going along?", asked Louis K, facing Dr. Blackstar.

"Burned a witch today", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Probably wasn't a real witch", said Louis K.

"Why do you think that?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"A real witch would have used her magic to escape", said Louis K.

"No, we keep them suspended for one to two months, that way they loose their powers", explained Dr. Blackstar.

"And then you torture and rape them before you burn them, right", said Louis K.

"I can assure you that the prison guards are loyal, responsible and incorruptible. They would never do such a think", said Dr. Blackstar, while readjusting his sleeves.

"Fun fact, keeping a witch as a slave would be perfectly legal", said Dr. Evans.

"Slaves with magical powers legally fall under the magical artifact law. If you can properly contain them, you can keep them", added Dr. Blackstar, "but I honestly wouldn't know how".

"The class four A magical personnel control device", said Louis K., "I've seen a witch wearing one once".

"What's that?", asked the symmetrical bald man.

"Basically a slave collar with a few extra features", explained Louis K., "it can be remotely detonated, generates a magic suppression field that can be turned off and can deliver painful shocks whenever the owner wants. The collar and the remote are powered by four nuclear double A batteries".

"What's a nuclear double a battery?", asked Josef K.

"An energy storage device, double a refers to the size", explained Dr. Evans, "as far as I know, the nuclear variant lasts for thousands of millennia".

"I bet these things are extremely valuable", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Yeah, there are only two groups with the resources, capabilities and know-how necessary to produce this marvel of technology", said Louis K.

"You know someone with access to late golden age technology!", yelled Dr. Evans in excitement, "Who are they and where can I find them?".

"Say Josef, have you heard that they're auctioning of another unlucky soul's property?", asked Louis K.

"Stay on topic, please! Where can I find them?", asked Dr. Evans.

"One is called 'Prof. Kortig und Neffe Gentechnik Gmbh', they are located on an island in the Atlantic, northeast of Island. The other is a society of isolationist, technocratic, zealots, called 'Servants of the machine god', their temple is located in the Himalaya mountain range in Asia, carved into a really high mountain", said Louis K. Maka had no idea where any of these places Louis had just listed were, or if he was telling the truth. Dr. Evans looked down at his plate.

"You sure meet a lot of exotic people on your travels", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Anywhere, are you coming to that auction?", asked Louis K. Dr. Evans had started crying softly.

"Is it one of these were they sell all of some unlucky sod's property, and if they don't raise enough to pay his debt, they sell him?", asked the symmetrical bald man.

"Yes", said Josef K, "a trainee at my bank will be conducting the auction".

"I wonder who that unlucky person is", said the redhead.

"Jacqueline, impoverished widow and mother of three", said Louis K.

"I didn't actually want to know", said the redhead.

"Her husband died in the war, leaving her with a crushing debt", said Louis K, "Did I mention it was a arranged marriage, her parents died of the Oregon flu".

"Seriously, we don't want to hear it!", said the redhead.

"I actually find it quite funny", said Screwhead.

"Me, too. I sometimes watch these auctions just to see them get more and more desperate as each item is sold, often extremely cheaply", said the symmetrical bald man, "It's not like that asymmetrical garbage wouldn't deserved it".

"I bid on items I don't want to raise the price", said Dr Eisenberg.

"Say Josef, how much does she owe?", asked Louis K.

"Could we stop talking about this?", asked Dr. Evans, before emptying his wine glass. He had stopped crying. Maka wondered why he had cried. Was it because of that woman's woeful tale? No, Louis K hadn't even mentioned it before her owner started to cry. Was it because the groups he wanted to see where holed up in such exotic locations? Well, the timing would certainly fit. Why did he want to meet these groups? He seemed to be interested in their technology. Maybe he would go to meet them. If he did, what would happen with her? Would he take her along, or leave her here. That would certainly make escape very easy. What if her owner died somewhere in the middle of nowhere and nobody knew that he was dead. She would not only be able to escape, she could steal all of his furniture and sell it, which would make her rich, rich enough to live comfortably for the rest of her live. If he indeed left for these locations, she would be all set. But based on his reaction that seemed unlikely.

"I heard there is a war starting somewhere in Mexico", said Louis K.

"Just shut up, will you", said Dr. Evans. Josef K looked at Maka. Maka tried to remain calm, wondering whether Josef K would rape her. He seemed to have forgotten about it, thanks to his brother's off topic remarks. Screwhead looked at his pocket watch.

"I should get going. I need to get up early tomorrow", said Screwhead, as he got up from his seat. The first guest was already leaving. Maka had almost made it.

"Me too", said the redhead, "nice dinner, but I need to get going". Two guests were leaving.

"If these two leave, the table will be asymetrical, as well as the number of guests", said the symmetrical bald man, "I'm leaving, too. Nice dinner, by the way". Maka couldn't believe it, Screwhead had started a chain reaction, soon all the guest would be gone. But as long as Josef K was there, she wouldn't be safe. She just hoped that the chain reaction would keep going.


	39. The last guests leave

"Now the Europeans are the majority", said Josef K.

"Hey, Soul, could you play the piano a bit?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans and got up from his seat and went into his living room, followed by his guests. Maka took the plates from the table and went into the kitchen. Vanessa was still watching her despite there not being anything left to poison. Maka started doing the dishes as Dr. Evans began to play a beautiful melody.

"What are you still doing here?", asked Maka, "There's nothing left to poison".

"I'm watching you", said Vanessa.

"Could you at least help me with the dishes?", asked Maka.

"No", said Vanessa. Maka finished the dishes and proceeded to dry them them. Halfway through her owner called her and ordered her to bring another bottle of wine. Maka picked a bottle with a rectangular base. She brought it upstairs and handed it to Dr. Evans.

"That's not wine, that's whiskey", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"Actually, whiskey sounds great", said Louis K.

"Serve the whiskey", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka before she opened the bottle, it was closed with a screw, not with a cork, like the wine, and poured it into her owner's wine glass.

"Whiskey's not served in wine glasses, but shot glasses", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master. What is a shot glass, master?" asked Maka.

"A small glass", explained Dr. Evans. Maka went into the kitchen to search for shot glasses. She had seen some very small glasses earlier. She took five glasses and carried them into the living room. Josef K was emptying the wine glass she had filled with whiskey. She put the glasses down and filled them with whiskey, before she handed them their glasses.

"Another!", demanded Louis K, who had emptied his glass before she had handed his brother a glass. Maka refilled his glass after she handed everybody else theirs.

"Another!", demanded Louis K.

"Another!", demanded Louis K.

"Another!", demanded Louis K.

"Don't you think you had enough?", asked his brother while Louis K was emptying another glass.

"Give the bottle", demanded Louis K, apparently paying no heed to his brother, before ripping the bottle from Maka's hands.

"I'm sorry, he always get's like this if he is given hard alcohol", apologized Josef K.

"Bring me another bottle", demanded Louis K.

"Yes, sir", said Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans. Maka was confused, while she knew that her owner's orders overruled Louis K.'s, she did not know what she should say. "Yes, master" might sound like she was contradicting him.

"Of course, master", said Maka, which seemed to her to be a good alternative.

"Louis seems to be still standing", said Dr. Blackstar. Dr. Eisenberg waved his hand in Louis K.'s face. Louis K. threw a well aimed punch at Dr. Eisenberg's face. Richard quickly intervened, blocking Louis K.'s fist and punching him squarely in the face. Louis K. fell down to the floor, and quickly got back up, his left eye black.

"Bring me another bottle", demanded Louis K.

"I'm sorry sir", said Maka, "master already said no".

"Come, I'll bring you home", said Josef K. to his brother, "before you start a fire".

"I just want another drink", said Louis K.

"Seriously, you know what happened the last time you got drunk", said Josef K.

"I'd say he already is drunk", said Dr. Evans.

"I could drink you all under the table", said Louis K.

"Well, I don't think so, I'm a god, gods don't get drunk", said Dr. Blackstar, clearly at least a little drunk.

"Puer can also drink a lot", said Dr. Evans.

"What's with that guy's name, anyway. Latin for 'Child of death'?", asked Louis K.

"His parents were probably assholes, like Soul's, or Franken's", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"I take offense to that. My parents are nice people, even though my brother Wes was always their favorite", said Dr. Evans.

"Apparently, they give stupid names to all their children, and you seem to haven't gotten over their preference of your brother over you", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"Stop talking about my parents like that", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you", said Dr. Eisenberg. Josef K. was attemting to remove Louis K. from the room.

"Should I help them, master?", asked Maka, pointing at Josef and Louis K.

"No", said Dr. Evans. Maka wished she could help them. The earlier Josef K. was gone, the earlier she would be safe.

"I think I should leave now", said Dr. Eisenberg, looking at his pocket watch, "I have enjoyed myself, I just wish I could attend more of your gatherings". There was only Dr. Blackstar and the K. brother's left, and they were in the process of leaving. It was only a question of time until the last guest had left. Then she could probably get some sleep, too, she was starting to get tired. She went back into the kitchen and continued to dry the dishes. Before she had finished drying the last dish off, Dr. Blackstar, said his good-bye.

"Clean up here, then you may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"I don't want breakfast tomorrow", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Then Dr. Evans left, he presumably went to bed. Maka finished the dishes and cleaned the kitchen and the dining room table. She wanted to go to sleep, but remembered the shot and the wine glasses, so she went and cleaned them, too. As she was drying them off, she heard a knock on the door. She didn't know what she should do. Should she open? Or should she leave the door closed? She decided to open the door. It was Josef K.

"I remembered I had forgotten something", said Josef K. It seemed she had felt a little too safe after Josef K. had left. Should she close the door, slam it shut? Then Josef K. would complained to her owner, and she would get punished. She wondered what the punishment would be. It would probably be worse than getting raped. It would probably entail getting raped among other things. She would have to cooperate now. There was no other way.

"What have you forgotten, sir?", asked Maka, on the verge of tears, barely able to keep herself from crying, to keep at least some dignity.

"My coat", answered Josef K before he went in, took his coat and left. After he had left, Maka cried from relief. After she had regained her composure she went and finished the wine glasses before she went to bed. When should she get up in the morning? Her owner said that he didn't want breakfast tomorrow, he probably intended to sleep in. So she could sleep in, too, without getting in trouble. Maka decided to set the alarm for nine o'clock, it would give her eight hours of sleep.


	40. Tsubaki

When she woke up, she was very hungry. She hadn't had any dinner yesterday, even though she could have easily eaten after the guests had finished eating. Or even while they were still eating, if she could have been sure that Vanessa would have kept quit. She was probably to occupied with thoughts about the danger Josef K posed to her. She made her bed, listening carefully whether her owner was awake or not. She couldn't hear him, so she proceeded into the kitchen and quickly ate all the bread that was left, which wasn't much, but she put butter on it, so it sated her somewhat. She would have to inform her owner about the lack of bread and wondered if he would punish her. He would most likely only send her to buy some new bread.

Thinking once again about her escape, she took the empty wine and whiskey bottles and the corks and the bottle cap and hid them in the junk room. If she filled them with water, she would not have to worry about water while she was escaping. Food and water rations would not be a problem to her at all, the collar and a lack of means to navigation were. She went outside and fetched her owner's mail, he would want to read it when he got up.

At ten o'clock, Dr. Evans came downstairs. He looked through his mail, Maka was watching what he would do. Like yesterday, he asked her to fetch a knife and then he opened his mail.

"Master, there is no more bread left", said Maka after he had finished reading his mail.

"You'll have to buy some", said her owner.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"You'll also have to deliver a letter of complaint to the bakery's proprietress", said her owner, "I have yet to write that letter".

"Yes, master, I'll clean the basement in the mean time", said Maka.

"No, clean the living room", ordered her owner.

"Yes, master, I'll clean your living room", said Maka. Her owner then left the dining room and headed to his office. Maka went and cleaned the living room. While she was dusting the shelves, her owner left the his office and handed her an envelope.

"This is the letter I want you to give to Ms. Nakatsukasa", said her owner, Maka concluded that she was the proprietress of the bakery. He then handed her a small plain wallet, a different color from the one he usually used.

"There should be enough money for the bread in this wallet", said her owner, "I want you to buy rye bread".

"Yes master", said Maka and went to get the bag she had used to carry her owner's grocery shopping yesterday and left for the bakery. When she arrived there, a young black haired woman was manning the register, wearing a plain white dress with a white apron on top.

"Good day, madam", greeted Maka.

"What can I get for you?", asked the woman.

"A rye bread", said Maka. The woman grabbed a rye bread and put it on the counter.

"That would be seven hundred fifty dollars", said the woman. Maka handed her a thousand dollar bill, the same one she had found in the laundry. The woman handed her change in form of a fifty dollar coin and two hundred dollar coins. After she had put the money into the wallet, she took the bread and put it in the bag.

"Say, are you Ms. Nakatsukasa?", asked Maka.

"Yes, and you are?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Maka", said Maka.

"Who is your master?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Dr. Soul Evans", said Maka. Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed surprised.

"How does he treat you?" asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Why do you want to know?", asked Maka.

"I was once a slave myself", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"How did you get free?", asked Maka.

"Answer my question", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"He makes me work a lot, gave me a whipping two days ago", said Maka.

"Does he feed you properly?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, he does", said Maka, "but could you please tell me how you got free?"

"My old master died", said Tsubaki, "and his will stated that all slaves of his household would be set free".

"What did he die from?", asked Maka.

"Old age, he was one hundred and twenty when he died", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "owned four generations of my family".

"You were born into slavery?", asked Maka.

"Yes, say, how did you become a slave?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I'm from West Wyoming. Slavers burned my village and took everyone they could capture", explained Maka.

"I guess you were sold at a slave market then", said Ms Nakatsukasa.

"Yes", said Maka.

"Before I was set free, I thought I would get sold on a slave market after my master's death. I had nightmares about people staring and groping at me, haggling with a salesman over the price", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "I was extremely happy when the notary brought us the news that we would be set free".

"Anyway, I'm supposed to give you this letter from my master", said Maka as she handed Ms. Nakatsukasa the letter. Ms. Nakatsukasa read the letter quickly, her expression becoming angrier with each line that she read.

"Meme, bring me two rags!", yelled Ms Nakatsukasa, facing the backroom.

"Yes, misstress", yelled Meme from the backroom. A short while later Meme came with two rags, one was clean, the other looked like it had been used to clean a toilet in a tenement. Ms Nakatsukasa took both rags and but them down behind the counter. Then she picket up the dirty rag.

"Open wide", ordered Ms Nakatsukasa. Maka was glad this order was given to Meme and not her. Meme apparently hadn't connected the dots yet and obeyed without begging for mercy. Ms. Nakatsukasa began to insert the rag, Meme was clearly struggling to control herself not to fight back.

"A bit of friendly advice", said Ms. Nakatsukasa to Maka, "If your master orders you to bring two rags, bring two clean ones".

"Thank you, madam", said Maka as Ms. Nakatsukasa completely inserted the rag into Meme's mouth. She then tied the other rag over Meme's mouth.

"You will get no food until I decide to take the rag out", said Ms Nakatsukasa to Meme, "You will also get a whipping instead of lunch and dinner today".

"MmmphMmmph", mmmphed Meme. Maybe she was trying to beg for mercy.

"I should get going, master might get angry, goodbye Ms Nakatsukasa", said Maka.

"Goodbye Maka", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.


	41. An additional problem

"Mmmph", mmmphed Meme, she probably said goodbye. Maka left the bakery and went back to her owner's house. On the way, she came across a beggar.

"Spare a coin?", begged the beggar. Maka didn't know what she should do.

"I'm sorry, sir, if I do that my master will get angry", said Maka.

"Please, I'm starving", said the beggar.

"If I give you anything, my master will give me a whipping", said Maka. The beggars stomach grumbled.

"Only if he finds out", said the beggar, "Please, you don't have much to lose". Maka though about how she was hungry during the deportation from village to the slave market, and how much she had graved something to eat at this time, this beggar was probably hungrier than she was back then.

"Please, don't let me die of hunger", said the beggar. Not helping him would go against the values of her homeland, which she had been taught in school. But on the other hand, she didn't want to get a whipping. Then again, would her owner check how much money there was left in the wallet? Probably, seeing as this was the first time he had sent her out to buy anything for him.

"Please", said the beggar. Maka decided not to take a chance and went away. A short while later she came across a police officer.

"Present the collar", ordered the police officer. Maka obeyed. The police officer read the label.

"Carry on", ordered the police officer.

"Goodbye, officer", said Maka. Maka wondered why the police officer had just checked the label on her collar. Were they looking for a runaway slave? If so, Maka hoped that this slave got away and would not be recaptured. The fate he would suffer otherwise would be terrible. The rest of the way home went uneventful. When she got there, she could hear her owner playing the piano. She put the bread into the kitchen and then went to talk to her owner. She waited until he had finished playing.

"Master, I have bought bread, like you ordered", said Maka.

"Rye bread?", asked her owner.

"Yes, master, rye bread. Her master took out his watch and looked at the time.

"What took you so long?", asked her owner.

"After I had given Ms. Nakatsukasa the letter, she forced a rag into Meme's throat, then she discribed how she would punish Meme further", said Maka.

"Good", said her owner, "now hand me the change".

"Yes, master", said Maka and handed him the change. He quietly counted it, looking at each individual coin.

"Tell me how Ms. Nakatsukasa is going to punish her impudent slave", ordered her owner. Maka told him that Meme would get a whipping instead of lunch and dinner.

"Are you honestly expecting me to believe that this meager explanation took that long?", asked her owner.

"No, master, I left out a lot of details", said Maka, "I was also stopped on the way home, by a police officer".

"If you ever try to runaway, I will put a very high bounty on your head", said her owner, "So high that you won't be safe anywhere. Then, after you have been recaptured, I'll have crucified".

"I would never think about running away, master", said Maka.

"I sure hope so", said her owner. Maka was tremendously worried about these news. Having a price on her head would make her escape very difficult. A bounty hunter would probably shoot first and then ask questions later. On the other hand, would the bounty be higher if she was returned alive? No, that would be ridiculous, after all, then she would only be killed in a very painful fashion. Maka shivered at the mere though of crucifixion. As far as she knew, that was one of the most painful deaths imaginable. Maka started to prepare lunch. Maybe killing her owner would be a good strategy after all. It would reduce the ammount of countries that would not extradite her, but, as her owner had stated, the bounty would be so high that she would not be safe anywhere. Of course, the government of West Wyoming would protect her. Nobody would harm her once she was home.

Maka was frying some potatoes in a frying pan when it occurred to her that her homeland had already failed to protect her once. Otherwise, she would now be in her village, at home, cooking lunch for her family, probably fried potatoes. How could she protect herself from bounty hunters? Maybe she could disfigure her face, then people would not recognize her. On the other hand, that would maybe give the impression that she was trying to hide the brand of the exiled, a capital "E" lying on it's side. While she did not have that brand, looking like she was hiding it would not be a good idea and could result in her getting sentenced to twenty five years of reformative labor. On the other hand, the government had information of every exiled on file, they would figure out that she wasn't exiled. They would probably celebrate her as a heroine who underwent great pain in order to rejoin her homeland.

But there had to be a better way than to stick her head into hot coals. But what? That arms dealer who attended the dinner yesterday probably knew how to deal with bounty hunters. But he would never tell her. Maybe, if she found him alone, she could trick him into telling her a few tricks, but how? There was also no guarantee that she would get a change to talk to him alone on one of her owner's gatherings. Vanessa would also be watching her. It would be extremely difficult to get any information out of him. Who else would have knowledge about being a fugitive? Maybe Dr. Eisenberg? But he had a bodyguard and an army, he wouldn't have to worry himself. Maybe she should just kill her owner, so that he would be unable to put a price on her head. But her owner had wealthy friends who would then probably do it for him. She would have to figure out a way to remove the threat posed by a price on her head.


	42. The cult

After she had finished the fried potatoes, she put them on a plate and served it to her owner. He was, however, not at the table. If he wouldn't eat the potatoes soon, they would get cold. If they got cold, he would get angry with her. She had to find him. Maybe he was in his office. If that was the case, she shouldn't disrupt him, or she would get a whipping. She went to the door of his office. There was not a sound to be heard from his office. She put her ear on the door, still nothing. He wasn't in his office. Where else could he be? Maybe he was the living room. She went into the living room and couldn't find him there. Maybe he was in the library. She couldn't find him there either. She looked everywhere on the upper floor, but couldn't find him anywhere. She then decided to look in the basement. She eventually found him in his private museum.

"Master?", said Maka.

"Yes?", said Dr. Evans.

"I've prepared your lunch", said Maka. Dr. Evans left the room, probably to eat his lunch, leaving Maka alone in the museum. Maka knew that she shouldn't, but she couldn't help but to take a look at the exhibits. One was a flat rectangular black object, held in place with a glass stand. It had a black glassy rectangle on one side, with a circular concave button underneath said rectangle. She wondered what this was object was there for, or if it was merely some kind of art. She walked around it and looked at the back of the object. There was a stylized picture of an apple that somebody had bitten into once. What was the meaning of the symbol?

The exhibit next to it was a construct of two white rectangular plates, angled so that one plate was perpendicular to the other plate. The plates were connected by two hinges at their edges, visible only from the side or the back. On the plate that was lying on the surface was a large arrangement of buttons, all rectangular, most of them showing letters. She could find every letter she knew there, and even a few that she didn't. Above the letters were numbers. On each of the numbered buttons was also a symbol over the number, the one being above the one was a exclamation mark, but she couldn't tell which one the others were there for. Above these buttons was yet another row of buttons, the first read "e-s-c", followed by twelve buttons labeled "F-1" through "F-12". Apart from the top row, the whole arrangement was similar to a typewriter. The perpendicular plate possessed a black rectangular glassy area in the middle, filling up almost all the surface on the plate. Above this glassy area, on the edge of the plate, in the middle, was a small circular hole, covered with glass, it reminded her of the spyhole in her door. Walking around the exhibit, she saw the same symbol as on the other object on the back of this exhibit.

The next exhibit looked like a smaller variant of the the first exhibit she had looked at. Maka wondered what these things were there for. Where did her owner find these wondrous things, which were apparently much more valuable than she was. Were they still functional? Of course there was no way Maka could figure this out, since the display cases were all locked, with the locks clearly visible. On some level Maka was glad that the display cases were locked, otherwise these things would present an enormous risk factor, because her owner had threatened to crucify her if she damaged one of the exhibits. But, examining the display cases, she would have to put some real effort into that. The glass was much thicker than normal glass and felt somehow different to the touch than normal glass, not as cold.

It was at this time that Maka realized that she should stop dawdling, or she would be in a lot of trouble. She went back upstairs, where her owner was still busy eating his meal. He didn't seem to have noticed that she wasn't in the kitchen over the last few minutes.

"Bring me a glass of water", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and brought him a glass of water. What were these objects in Dr. Evans' basement? Where they rare tools? Pieces of art? Religious artifacts? Than they would belong to an apple worshiping cult. Maka could clearly see why religion had been outlawed in West Wyoming. People who waste their time away worshiping apples deserve the twenty five years of reformative labor that the glorious government of West Wyoming determined to be the appropriate rehabilitation for wasting public resources on occult rituals. And even if their apple-god listened to them, how much use was a successful apple harvest anyway? Apples might be very tasty, but the cereals would always be what feeds the people. You can't live on apples alone. Maka wondered whether this apple worshiping cult was still around. Probably not, it was rather unlikely that such a dumb cult found any members at all, jet alone survive for a decent amount of time.

On the other hand, Maka had learned at school that people believe all sort of stupid things when they don't follow the president, Charles Anderson Ligua, maybe the apple worshiping cult was just a symptom of a society that lacked the enlightenment that the president had delivered to the democratic people's republic of West Wyoming. She would be extremely glad once she could rejoin her homeland, her happiness would know no bounds. But the path there would be extremely long and difficult. She would have to find a way to get rid of her slave collar. She would have to evade bounty hunters and cross several borders. She would have to plan her route carefully. Her owner had finished eating. She took the plate into the kitchen and ate for herself before she cleaned the dishes.


	43. Cleaning the museum

After she had finished the dishes, she went downstairs to clean her owner's private museum. She also wanted to continue looking at the exhibits. One of these exhibits was a small, black armband with a black box attached to it. Upon closer examination she noticed that it could be locked. Maybe this was some kind of slave collar. It was to small for a collar, it probably was wrapped around the wrist or ankle. So they used to put these things around the slaves wrist or ankle. If they were still doing that, Maka's escape would be a lot easier, nobody would automatically see that she was a slave even if she failed to remove it. She just wondered what the black box was there for, but she would probably never know.

She wondered if this thing was easier to remove than her collar. Probably, otherwise the model she wore would never have caught on, but how could she remove hers? She would have to find something to remove it, but even if she found something, she could still not be sure if it would be enough to remove her collar. If she wanted to be certain she would have to experiment on someone else's collar. That's when she had to think about Ms. Nakatsukasa. She said she was a slave once. Maybe she still had her old collar lying around somewhere, as some sort of macabre keepsake. But would they really let slaves keep their collar when they set them free? On the one hand, these things were probably worth something. On the other, a slave was probably worth much more than the collar that they have to wear. So if someone let's their slave go, they would probably not care much about the collar. So Ms. Nakatsukasa probably got to keep her collar. Assuming she still had it, probably to remind herself of her probably very sad childhood. What must it be like to spend one's entire childhood enslaved? Probably terrible. On the other hand, she had never known anything different until she was set free. Would it be likely that Ms. Nakatsukasa still had her collar? And if she still had it, would she let Maka have it?

How should Maka try to acquire Ms Nakatsukasa's old collar. Maybe she could simply ask the next time she had to buy something from the bakery. Maybe she could convince Meme to steal it for her. But Meme probably wouldn't dare to cross her mistress. Strange that a former slave was so hard on her own slave, now that she had one. If Maka ever had slaves herself, she would treat them nicely. Of course, she was very far away from having slaves herself. The prices in West Wyoming were also very high, even though that only meant to expensive for anyone in her village to afford one. But how to get her hands on Ms. Nakatsukasa's old collar? Maybe she could steal it herself. The consequences if she got caught would be extremely dire. She could impossibly risk this, but maybe she would have to.

Maybe there was another way to get a collar to experiment on. Vanessa said that she buys them for Dr. Eisenberg from Louis K or other arms dealers. Where did that Louis K. live? Talking to him would only be possible if he lived in the same town as her owner. But he probably wouldn't help her. After all, then he would betray a friend of his. Maybe he had slaves himself who would give her information willingly. But how should she search for him? She could impossibly go around and ask for a known arms dealer, people would think that she was trying to acquire weapons. Was he known as an arms dealer to the general population or did only the people at her owner's table yesterday know it? His brother would be probably be easier to reach. And asking for him would not arouse as much suspicion, since that guy appeared to be a banker. A banker who wanted to have sex with her, if she liked it or not. She couldn't approach him, it was too dangerous.

Maka stopped thinking about her escape to admire another exhibit of the museum. It was a shiny black statue of a man getting ready to throw a spear. It wasn't really very realistic, more stylized, but it was very shiny. Most of the exhibits were some things that were probably used for occult rituals, this seemed to be just a piece of art. From what period were these exhibits? She remembered the discussion yesterday that had caused her owner to cry. Louis K. had told him about slave collars that were used on witches. According to him these things could cause pain remotely, which, as far as she knew, meant that the witch's owner didn't even have to be in the same room. Maka could easily imagine what for a nightmare that would be. She imagined her owner, sitting in his living room while watching the fireplace, saying to himself "I've got a hunch that Maka's not working hard enough. Better cause her some pain remotely". Maka felt sorry for that enslaved witch. Her live must be even worse than hers right now, if she was still alive. Her owner called this witch slave collar "golden age technology". Maybe all these things were golden age technologies.

Maka returned to think about her escape. The best way to figure out how to get the collar off would be to experiment on Ms. Nakatsukasa's old collar. In order to do that, she would have to acquire this thing first. But how should she do that? Maybe she could talk to Ms. Nakatsukasa about her life. Maybe she would then tell her where she kept the collar, or an opportunity would present itself to steal it. Maybe she could bribe or coerce Meme into stealing it for her. But she didn't have anything to use as a bribe. She would have to coerce Meme. Maybe Maka could offer to "come back for her", after she had escaped. Meme probably wanted to be free just as much as she wanted to be. But such an offer would require Maka to let Meme in on her plan, and Meme was not good at keeping secrets. She would have to figure a few things out first. When would she have to visit the bakery again? When the bread ran out again, therefore in a few days.


	44. A strange meal

As Maka finished cleaning the museum, she wondered what live in the golden age must have been. It was probably better than it was now. Otherwise, why would it be called "golden age"? There seemed to have been a lot of cults during the golden age. Something about the golden age must have caused the emergence of nonsensical cults, like the apple worshiping one that must have produced several of the artifacts on display. But what if there never was a apple worshiping cult? Maybe these apple images were some sort of signature by the guy who owned these things before her owner got his hands on them. But who would use an edible fruit as a crest. Maybe that guy was a lunatic, a mad inventor. Maybe he had an apple for a head. Maka could picture Dr. Applehead in his laboratory, constructing some machine of unknown use. Or maybe these things could somehow create apples. That would explain how life in the golden age was better than it was now, they had an infinite amount of apples. But then why did these things come in different sizes? Maka did not know. She also wouldn't really like an all apple diet. There was much about the golden age that she did not understand. She wished she could know more, but she had to focus on her escape, and do her work or Dr. Evans would sell her to a fuel farm.

She went back upstairs, where she found her owner in his living room, looking out at his lawn. He turned around to face her once he had heard her enter.

"You did not weed the lawn properly", said Dr. Evans, "There's already weed growing again". Maka knew that she was in trouble. She would have to be careful to avoid getting a whipping.

"I'm sorry, master, but even if I weed the lawn, there will be invisible pieces of the weed left", explained Maka, "The weeds are growing back"

"Then how to remove them?", asked her owner.

"I would have to completely remove all of the soil, then search trough it and remove every little piece of plant", explained Maka, hoping he would not order her to do exactly that.

"Then how comes my neighbor's lawn is free of weed, despite the fact that he never ordered such measures?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Once there is a healthy lawn, it chokes out the weed", said Maka, "without proper maintenance, the weed would come back".

"Weed the lawn again", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and left the house to weed the lawn. Out there she could see Louis K and an old lady, eating steaks and drinking tea, while sitting under a large yellow umbrella. Who was the guest and who was the host? Probably the old lady, but maybe even Louis K. That would simplify matters somewhat. Maka began to weed the lawn, starting with the half facing the neighbor's lawn, so she could eavesdrop on these two.

"Oh, Louis, I always like your cooking, but I must say, this is fabulous", said the old lady. Why would Louis K. cook his food himself, if he had cooked, he must be the host, therefore own both the house and Jonathan. Why didn't he make Jonathan cook? Maybe he didn't trust Jonathan to cook for his guests.

"I'm glad that you like it, Granny", said Louis K. So he had his grandmother over for dinner. Or tea. What exactly was that for a gathering? Then Jonathan came out, carrying a can of tea.

"Here is the tea, master", said Jonathan.

"Just put it down on the table, dear", said the old Lady.

"We'll call you if we need anything else", added Louis K.

"Yes, master", said Jonathan. He then moved away from the table, around the house, to a point were his owner and the old lady couldn't see him and sat down.

"I must say, this is better than the usual meat", said the old lady.

"Agree, such fine specimens are rare", said Louis K.

"Where did you find it?", asked the old lady.

"Oh, somewhere in town, near the marketplace, as usual", said Louis K. The two then resumed eating, changing the topic of gardening, which seemed to be some kind of hobby to the old lady. Maka proceeded to weed the garden near where Jonathan was sitting. She would have to somehow start a conversation about Louis K.

"Are you sure you wont get in trouble for this?", asked Maka.

"Whatever do you mean?", asked Jonathan.

"Sitting around like that", said Maka.

"No, when Granny is over, I generally don't have to do much", said Jonathan.

"How comes?", asked Maka, remembering how she had to work until late at night yesterday.

"He locks me in my quarter in the morning, then lets me out after he has finished preparing the meal", said Jonathan.

"Have you ever wondered why he locks you in?", asked Maka.

"No, I just enjoy the time off", said Jonathan.

"He must have some sort of secret", said Maka.

"He's an arms dealer, of course he has secrets", answered Jonathan, now slightly annoyed.

"What are they eating?", asked Maka, trying to turn the conversation around.

"I don't know", said Jonathan, before he got up and went back inside his owner's house. Maka could have done this better, she didn't find any useful information about Louis K. But on the other hand, Louis K. probably had secrets that could be used for blackmail, she would just have to find them out. But even if she found something to blackmail Louis K. with, she couldn't ask for much, because then he would rather kill her and pay the damages to her owner than to give her what she wanted in exchange for her silence. But he probably had many useful things that were worth less than eleven million dollars. She would have to find something to blackmail Louis K. with. She could maybe try to figure out the nature of the meat he was eating, if he was so secretive about how he had prepared it.


	45. West Wyoming's holidays

As Maka continued weeding the lawn, she watched Louis K and his guest finish their meal before they went inside. Jonathan went out and put the large umbrella away. A short while later, Maka still had about half the lawn left to go, it started to rain. Maka cursed her bad luck, why did it always rain when she was working outside? Soon, she was soaked to the bone.

"Maka", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master?", said Maka, looking up from her work. He was looking out of a window.

"You may finish weeding the lawn later, when it isn't raining", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She was surprised that he ordered her to postpone her work due to the rain. Maka went back inside, wringed out her dress and put it back on. Then she went to her quarter and changed into another dress, hanging the wet one over the whipping post. Maka would have to clean her dresses soon, or she would run out of them. Then she would have to walk around in a dirty one, and her owner would get angry.

Seeing as she still had several hours until dinner had to be ready, so she decided to clean the guest rooms. After she had done so, she prepared dinner. She didn't know what she should make, but she found a jar with jam in the pantry, tasting revealed the jam to be strawberry jam. She put the jam on the bread and served it to her owner. He ate it without comment. After he had finished, Maka ate for herself and washed the dishes.

Her owner had started playing the piano again. This time, she recognized the melody. It was the national anthem of West Wyoming. No, it was a bit different. The deviations didn't seem to be mistakes, but deliberate. Maka liked this melody, seeing as she connected many happy memories to this melody. It had always been played on holidays, like Charles Anderson Ligua's birthday, the anniversary of West Wyoming's founding, the anniversary of the victory over Green River, the birthday of the president's brother, the anniversary of the day an assassination attempt on the president had been thwarted by a mysterious, cloaked in white, figure, the West Wyoming beer day, because it was the president's favorite drink, the birthday of the president's wife, which changed every year and was sometimes celebrated several times a year and the West Wyoming harvest day. These holidays all went by the same schemata. First the mayor would hold a long speech, attendance was mandatory, but the speeches were so brilliant, that that was a completely unnecessary rule. Paying attention to the speech was also mandatory, under pain of reformative labor, death or exile. But as with the previous rule, this rule was unnecessary, as no one ever violated it. Then the entire village would sing the national anthem. Singing off tune was punishable by a day in the stocks. After they had sung the anthem, the mayor's wife would read from Charles Anderson Ligua's autobiography "The Eternal Struggle", it was always an excerpt relating to the holiday in question. Then they would sing the national anthem again, followed by several songs related to the holiday, then the national anthem again. Then they would swear the pledge of alliance to the the Democratic Peoples Republic of West Wyoming and it's president. After they had done that, the women went to prepare the food. They had to cook for the entire village. The men knew what each woman prepared, so the pressure to cook well was pretty big, or one would end up as the laughing stock of the entire village. Often, this was Meme's mother. After the lunch was finished, they ate. After the meal, they would sing the national anthem again, followed by several songs related to the holiday. At the end of the day, they sung the national anthem once again, before the entire village got drunk. Her father had never allowed her to drink much. She missed him a lot, but she couldn't mourn him in her situation. But once she had escaped, she would properly mourn the dead, not just her father, but all the brave men who died to defend them from Dr. Eisenberg. All the ones who had been selected to be shot by Dr. Eisenberg's medic. All the ones who would never see glorious West Wyoming again. The ones who would die toiling in a mine or fuel farm. Someday, West Wyoming would achieve it's final victory, which would be the end to the eternal struggle, but it would be a long time until then. By then, the dust of her bones would mix with the ground.

"Stop humming along", ordered her owner. Maka immeadiately stopped humming, she had started humming unconcously once the melody started, a habit she picked up because it made it easier for her to sing without a mistake once they started singing the anthem. A habit which her owner seemed to find annoying.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka. She wondered why her owner played the anthem of West Wyoming of all things. Maybe he was a foreign sympathizer. Then, letting him know that she was from West Wyoming would be useful to her plan. "I just couldn't help it when you began playing the national anthem of West Wyoming", said Maka, hoping that he would realize she was from West Wyoming, without hinting to much.

"That's 'An die Freude', and if hum along again, I'll whip you", said Dr. Evans, he clearly wasn't a foreign sympathizer.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She had trouble hiding her anger that some talentless musician had stolen the national anthem of West Wyoming. Her owner started to play a different melody. It was a very fast melody, it sounded scary and dramatic. The music seemed to be telling some sort of story, judging by how the tone of the melody changed. Close to the end, it became fast and dramatic, then the melody stopped, only to be finished with a loud keystroke. Maka began to dust the shelves of the living room.


	46. Searching Soul's dresser

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka as she put the feather duster away. She went into her quarters, set the alarm to six o'clock and went to sleep. She was reminiscing about her homeland, before she eventually fell asleep. In her dreams, her fond memories became nightmares of her capture. She had trouble sleeping that night. When alarm rung at six o'clock, Maka was unusually sleepy, as it was expected. She then went to prepare her owner's breakfast. She wondered what he would want for breakfast, a question she would probably end up asking herself quite often until she would escape. She decided to prepare bread with strawberry jam.

At seven o'clock she had prepared breakfast. To right of a plate with two slices of bread was a hot cup of tea. To the left was his mail, the paper had not arrived today, for some reason. She hoped her owner would not get angry with her over that. What would she say if he noted that the paper was missing and got angry? Maybe "I'm sorry, master, but when I checked for the mail, there was no newspaper. Would you like me to look again, master?". That sounded good. She would say that, it would probably safe her from a whipping.

However, her owner didn't came down. Maka wondered what he was waiting for, he normally came down at seven on the dot. Maybe he was oversleeping. Maybe it was the weekend. Maka would prepare a new cup of tea at eight o'clock, to be safe. Maka began to sweep the floor of the living room to calm herself down, there was no use worrying about her owner. What if he had been murdered and the killer made it look like she did it. Then she would have to run like hell. He was probably still alive, she needn't worry.

Then she heard him coming down stairs. He was alive and well. Maka didn't really know why she was happy about that. Maybe because him getting hurt would be bad news for her as well. If he was hurt, even in the best case scenario, he would be in a bad mood. That would be bad for her, because he would take it out on her. He sat down at the table.

"Why is my tea lukewarm?", asked Dr. Evans, holding the cup.

"I'm sorry, master, I had prepared it earlier and now it is cold", said Maka.

"Make a new one", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, and went to prepare a new cup of tea. After he had finished his breakfast and put read his mail, he called her.

"I'm going out today and I wont be home until evening, so you don't need to prepare lunch today", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, if her owner wasn't home, he wouldn't know if she did any work. This was probably the closest thing she would ever have to a day off until she had returned to her homeland.

"But don't think about slacking off. I will thoroughly check your work when I get back", warned Dr. Evans, "If I don't find everything to my satisfaction, I will whip you".

"I would never think about slacking off, master", said Maka.

"Good", said Dr. Evans, before he went upstairs, presumably to dress himself. Maka did the dishes, before she ate for herself. Finding that the sooner the bread was used up, the better, she ate a few slices more than usual. Then she went to do a laundry, that was when she saw her owner depart to wherever he was going. After she had finished the laundry, she realized that she could look into her owner's office without risk of crucifixion. She went to the door, put her hand on the knob and turned it. Then she found that the door was locked. Maka actually wondered why she would even want to enter his office. He was a lawyer, there probably wasn't anything useful inside. But didn't the slave trader mention some paperwork? Maybe he kept the documents that proved that he owned her somewhere, probably in the safe inside his office. If she could steal them, and get her collar off, there would be no way for him to prove that she was his slave. Then, she would be practically able to simply walk away. But these documents were probably in his safe, to which she didn't knew the combination. Maybe he had written it down in a place that wasn't his office. Even though that was unlikely, she would have to keep her eyes open.

Since there was still morning dew on the grass, she decided to wait until the afternoon to weed the lawn. So she then went to look through her owner's room, under the pretense of cleaning it. Of course, since her owner wasn't there, she didn't need a pretense. She would however have to clean his room, too, or her owner would get suspicious. She started by searching through his dresser. It mostly contained clothes. However, she also found a crumbled piece of paper. Maybe this was the combination to his safe. She quickly uncrumbled it. It was a picture. It showed two children, two young boys standing next to each other, smiling at the viewer. They wore rather casual clothing, even though it was still obvious that these clothes were rather expensive. If these clothes weren't dirty from play, Maka would have assumed that these were their best clothes. The boy on the left was an albino. Maybe it was her owner or one of his brothers. She couldn't recognize the second boy, but she could conclude from the picture that they were close friends. On closer observation, he looked somewhat like Dr. Blackstar. Maka wondered who drew this picture. The artist hadn't left any signature on the picture.

She recrumbled the picture and put it back where she found it, taking great care to put everything back the way it was. She didn't want her owner to know that she was searching through his stuff. Searching the other drawers of the dressers wielded no results, except clothes. There was one large white dress, covered in different colored stains. Her owner had apparently tried painting once. Since he didn't have an atelier or something similar, he must have stopped long ago. Also, the dress, on closer observation, was too small for him.


	47. Louis K's complaint

After she had put the drawer back the way she found it, she turned her attention to the nightstands. She first searched the drawer on the one to the left of the bed. It was empty. Probably because the corresponding side of the bed was unused. His wife would sleep there, if he was married. She decided to look into his nightstand. The drawer contained a deck of cards, held together by a piece of string, a large black book, the title written in bold red letters and a small, round and wooden disk. The small round disk interested her, so she picked it up. It appeared to be to two disks connected by a small round piece of wood, with a string wrapped around it. Maka managed to get the string out, accidentally dropping the object. Before it hid the ground, it came back up. Maka wondered what magic this was. How did it defy gravity? The thing didn't come all the way back up, dropping back down before it reached her hand again, it's magic must be weakening. Again, before it hit the ground, it came back up, but not as high as before. After a few more cycles, it's magic was used up, and it was hanging only by the string Maka had forgotten she was holding. This thing would not really be useful to her. She wrapped the string back onto the small piece of wood connecting the two disks. She hoped her owner would not notice that she accidentally used up the object's magic. She put the object back and cleaned her owner's room before she looked under the bed, where she found an old yellow sock. She would have to tell her owner about her find later.

Maka went downstairs, into the garden, to weed it. Louis K was lying in his garden, looking up into the sky. Maybe she could talk to him, without him getting suspicious.

"Good day, sir", said Maka. Louis K. looked in her direction. Maka hoped that a friendly greeting would open him up to further discussion. And why shouldn't that work?

"Can't I get a little sleep out here?", complained Louis K, "Your master will hear about this".

"I'm sorry, sir", apologized Maka, "I was just trying to be polite, I didn't know that you were sleeping, sir".

"Shut up", said Louis K. and went back into his house. Maka wondered what would happen to her when Louis K. complained to her owner. When she delivered her owner's letter of complaint to Ms. Nakatsukasa, she gagged and whipped Meme. Maybe this was what would happen to her. She had also spoken without being spoken to. She was in tremendous amounts of trouble. Maybe she could kill Louis K. before he managed to complain to her owner. Jonathan probably wouldn't stop her. Or would he? What would happen to Jonathan if Louis K. died. He would probably be inherited by someone in Louis K.'s family. Since Louis K. seemed to be unmarried, the next relative would be his brother, Josef K.. The heir may then decide to sell Jonathan off or keep him for himself. The question was, did Josef K. have any use for Jonathan? Since Josef K had talked about his landlady and the breakfast his landlady's slave was supposed to bring him, he probably lived in a boarding house. That meant that he would have no use for Jonathan. So if Louis K. died, Jonathan would be sold at a slave market. He probably wouldn't want to go through that again. Also, he would probably be rewarded if he saved Louis K. from Maka's assasination attempt. Murdering Louis K., even though he probably deserved it and the world would be a better place without him, would be impractical.

Nonetheless she still wanted to look whether there may be an opportunity to do it. She went into his garden, and up to his house. She found the backdoor to be closed and locked, so she went back into her owner's yard and to her work before anyone caught her spying. While she was weeding the lawn, she saw Louis K. walk over to her owner's house. He wanted to complain, but her owner was out. But he would simply come back later. She should probably make sure that there were two clean rags available, she didn't want a dirty rag shoved into her mouth.

"When is Dr. Evans going to be home?", asked Louis K.

"He said in the evening, sir. Is there something I should tell him?", asked Maka, not really intending to tell Dr. Evans whatever Louis K. might want her to tell him.

"Yes, tell him that his slave was rude and woke me up while I was sleeping on my lawn", said Louis K.

"Yes, sir", said Maka.

"Thanks, I appreciate that, I'm leaving with the evening train, so I wont see him. Bye", said Louis K. This went better than expected. Louis K. really expected her to complain in his name to her owner about herself. There was no way she would do that. She chuckled to herself before she went back to work. She wondered how Louis K. got anywhere in live with his naive trust in people. Especially considering the fact that he was an arms dealer.

When she had finished weeding the lawn, the sky was covered in large black clouds. It would start to rain at any moment. This time, she didn't get wet. Maka watched an enormous downpour start as she was preparing lunch. Then she realized that her owner wasn't home, so she ate the lunch she had just prepared herself. After she finished, she did the dishes, while she contemplated how well this day was going. Then she went to clean some of the other bedrooms on the upper floor, searching each one in the process. As she expected, she didn't find anything interesting in any of these rooms. They probably never had a permanent occupant. Then she cleaned her owner's bathroom, followed by the other bathroom, before she cleaned the bathroom on the ground floor. It appeared that she had cleaned every room in less than a week. Her owner would be satisfied with her, and he would never hear Louis K.'s complaint.


	48. Worry

Not having anything to do besides waiting for her owner, she went into the library. She began getting nervous of whether her owner would be satisfied with her work today. She decided to go trough the entire house and check if there might be any rooms that have yet to be cleaned. She found none. Her owner would be satisfied. She went back into the library and looked through the window out into the street. Maybe she could use her time to take a look at her owner's books. While she couldn't read very well, it was enough to read somewhat. She decided to look at some of the titles of the books, and pick one that sounded useful. "A-t-l-a-s" didn't sound useful, so she went on to the next book. The next book was "The eternal struggle", she recognized the president's name on the side. While it unquestioningly a very useful book, perhaps the most useful book, it wasn't useful to her current situation. The next title was "T-h-e-L-u-c-i-[?]-e-r-E-[?]-[?]-e-c-t", she wondered who or what that second word represented. Who was this fellow. It had to be a name, it was capitalized. She pulled it from the shelf and opened it. Then she tried to understand what was written inside. While it was written in English, she could not understand what the author was talking about. The fact that she didn't know half the words didn't help, either. She put the book back where she found it. As she looked onto the rest of the books, she realized that it would be extremely difficult to find anything useful, and probably a waste of time. She went to look out of the window.

Outside, she saw Louis K and his slave, Jonathan. They were walking towards a horse drawn carriage, Jonathan was carrying a suitcase, presumably K's. As Louis K. boarded the carriage, Jonathan handed the suitcase to the driver, who secured it on top. Then Louis K. was driven away, to board a train, as he had told her earlier. Maka remembered Louis K's complaint, that he expected her to deliver to her owner. Maka wondered why he had done this. He had his own slave to deliver the complaint for him. Why would he rely on possibly the only person interested in suppressing it to deliver it. Was he really so naive? But if he was so easy to trick, how did he make enough money as an arms dealer, a business where one almost exclusively deals with psychopaths. Maybe he wasn't very successful. But he didn't have any other income. He must be able to avoid getting screwed over at least some of the time. Maybe he was extremely lucky. He probably was just lucky. Extremely lucky. He travels into unsafe regions without much in the way of protecting himself and avoided getting enslaved by rampaging warlords, a fate the strongest army in the world could not prevent for her. Maybe the warlords left him alone because he was more useful to them free. He also seemed to have friends and family who could pay his ransom should it become necessary. Was his family really that wealthy? His brother seemed to live in a boardinghouse. But Josef K. went to college and worked at a bank. He probably was very well paid.

Maka wondered why she was thinking about all of this. She would never mention Louis K's complaint to her owner. She would get away with it. If she told him, she would get punished. She wondered how. Would her owner do the same thing to her Ms. Nakatsukasa did to Meme? Maybe. That gag looked like it would be uncomfortable. Especially getting no food would be bad. But the whipping would be worse. She would never tell her owner. She should stop thinking about all of this. She was driving herself crazy. She should get herself a glass of water, that would help her. She went into the kitchen and got herself a glass of water. After she drank it, she went into her quarter. She lay down on her bed. Looking around the room, she came to look at the whipping post.

Was Louis K. really relying on her to deliver the complaint, or had he done something else. Like what. That guy was probably an idiot with a hell lot of luck. But could luck really account for all of his success? The only things he seemed to have bought with his earnings were a house, a slave, a train ticket and his brother's education. Maka got out of bed and began to walk around outside. She had to get the whole thing out of her head. Louis K. was an idiot with a hell lot of luck. If he wasn't an idiot, then why did he make these idiotic comments at Dr. Evan's dinner. But he must be successful. Sending someone to college was very expensive. His brother seemed rather young, but so did Louis. There couldn't be a large age difference between these two. Maybe their parents were rich. But then, why did the brother pay and not the father. On the other hand, what could Louis K do to inform her owner? He could write a letter about the whole incident and have Jonathan deliver it. He could even have delivered it himself. Maybe it was already in the mailbox. Maka went outside to check. The mailbox was empty. Louis K. hadn't delivered the letter himself. But he could just mail the letter from anywhere. But if she found such a letter in the mail, she could destroy it. But if she got found out then, she would get crucified. And there was nothing she could do if Jonathan would deliver the complaint. But would her owner punish her harsher if he found out that she had been asked to tell him about Louis K's complaint and didn't? Probably, if someone gave her a message for him, she would be expected to deliver it. But how would he react if he found out she had suppressed a message for him. She went back into the library. Then she saw another carriage arriving, and her owner got off it, paid the driver and proceeded to go inside. Should she tell him or not?


	49. Two rags

"Good evening, master", said Maka, "Should I take your coat?"

"Yes", said Dr. Evans as he took of his coat and handed it to her, "What have you you done today?"

"I cleaned your room, weeded the lawn, cleaned all the bathrooms and the guests rooms on the upper floor", said Maka. Dr. Evans went into the living room, and looked out onto the lawn. Then he walked upstairs to inspect the rest of the rooms.

"You did a good job", said Dr. Evans after he had inspected all of the rooms. Maka realized that this would be the best moment to tell him about Louis K.'s complaint, he was clearly in a good mood.

"Master, Louis K. asked me to tell you", began Maka, maybe she could make it sound like it wasn't really her fault.

"Yes, what?", asked her owner.

"Apparently I woke him up while he was sleeping on his lawn and was rude to him", sputtered Maka, she completely failed to put herself in a positive light.

"Bring me two rags", ordered Dr. Evans. She had also forgotten to make sure that two clean rags where available. She only hoped she could find two clean rags.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the junk room and proceeded to search for clean rags. She didn't want to bring him the rag she used to wipe surfaces after she had dusted them. But there was no clean rag, just dirty ones. There probably was no clean rag. She would have to pick the two least dirty rags. Maybe she could clean two rags without her owner noticing. She would have to hurry up. She grabbed two rags she had already dug up, they looked like they had been cleaned and then not used for several years, having accumulated dust in the meantime.

"Hurry up!", ordered her owner. Maka had no time to clean the rags. She brought them to her owner. He took them booth. Knowing what would happen made it harder for Maka, the anticipation of the disgust of having a dirty rag shoved into her mouth was killing her.

"Open wide", ordered her owner. Maka opened her mouth. Her owner began to shove one of the rags into her mouth. He had difficulties inserting it fully, and Maka had difficulties not fighting back. Her mouth was stretched to the point of pain. The rag had only been inserting halfway. She felt like she was about to vomit. Her owner pushed it in further. Once he was done, her lower jaw felt like it was ready to pop out of her skull. He turned her around, and bound the other rag over her mouth. Maka wondered why this was necessary, it wouldn't stop her from removing the gag. Maybe it was to cover her mouth, because the rag in her mouth wasn't a pretty sight. Her owner turned her around again.

"Don't take the rags out, or I will know", said her owner, "You will also get no food until I decide to take them out, understand?". Maka nodded.

"Now go to your quarter and disrobe completely, rag stays in", ordered her owner. As Maka went to her quarter, she lamented her situation, cooperation was the best option. Noncooperation would result in a slow and painful death for her. And, at least at the moment, there was no way she could fight back, without getting executed in one of the most painful ways imaginable. She cursed Dr. Eisenberg, she cursed Dr. Evans, she cursed Louis K. She began to take her dress off, followed by the sandals, before she sat down on her bed. Then her owner entered the room.

"Fetch the whip", orderd her owner, "It's in the commode in the living room". Maka went to the commode, her naked skin freezing in the cold air. The air felt especially cold against her back, which would soon be aflame with pain. She opened the top drawer of the commode. It was filled with various newspapers, and a few magazines. The second one was filled with several papers. The third one contained the whip, alongside several books. She would have to search the commode more thoroughly later, it could easily contain something that would come in handy. But now she would have to bring the whip to her owner. Maybe she could remove one of the strands from the whip, to make the whipping less painful. No, she would get caught. With seven strands, a missing one would be very noticeable. She went back into her quarter and handed the whip to her owner, who then proceeded to tie her to the whipping post. Once he had her secured, he didn't start the whipping right away. He shook his right arm, easing up the muscles for the whipping he was about to deliver.

Despite the fact that she had already gotten a whipping once, the first lash was still a surprise. It landed horizontally on her shoulder, each individual strand leaving a burning sensation on her back. The second lash landed horizontally on her lower back. Luckily, there was no interference, but her eyes were already starting to fill with tears. The third was set between the two other, it caused minimal interference. Then he delivered the forth lash vertically on her left shoulder, it interfered with the three previously laid down lashes, causing extreme pain. The next tow lashes followed the same way, quickly reducing what was left of Maka's composure to nothing, leaving her unable to keep count on the individual lashes, and turning her eyes into waterfalls. Then the whipping continued without any particular pattern, or maybe she was just unable to recognize one. Either way, it hurt, more than her last whipping. Or maybe the last whipping was just to distant now to be considered worse. Anyway, this one quickly turned all sensation into a stream of continuous and intense pain. She wished it would stop. She knew he would stop eventually, if he wanted her dead, he'd nail her to a cross. After a felt eternity, he stopped the whipping and let her down from the post.


	50. Muted

"I want dinner on the table in twenty minutes", ordered her owner before he left the room. Maka had not yet found the strength to get up. She remained lying in on the floor for a few minutes. Her back was aflame with fire. She rolled onto her back and looked at the ceiling. The ceiling light shone brightly into her eyes. She rolled back on her stomach and got up. There was, once again, no blood on the floor. How much would a whipping that draws blood hurt? She hoped she would never find out. She put her dress back on, followed by her sandals and used the sleeve to wipe the tears out of her eyes. Her owner wanted dinner to be on the table in twenty minutes. At least, that was when he ordered, she didn't know how much time was left. She did know, however, that failure would mean another whipping. She went into the kitchen and prepared several breads with jam and put them on the table.

A short while later, her owner entered the room, and ate his dinner. Then, there was a knock on the door, she went to answer it. It was Jonathan.

"Hello, Maka, I have a message for your master, Dr. Evans", said Jonathan, "Could you tell him I'm here?" Maka nodded. She went into the dining room and wondered how she could tell her owner. She knocked on the wall. Her owner looked at her.

"What is?", asked her owner. Maka pointed in the direction of the door.

"There's someone at the door, who wants to talk to me?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka nodded. Dr. Evans went to the door.

"Good day, Dr. Evans", said Jonathan, "I have a message from my master, Louis K.".

"I'm listening", said Dr. Evans.

"He ordered me to tell you that your slave was rude to him and woke him up while he was sleeping. He later asked said slave to deliver the the message, but fears she might have suppressed it", said Jonathan.

"Don't worry, she hasn't", said Dr. Evans. Maka was glad to know that she had at least avoided additional punishment for suppressing the the complaint.

"What does the 'K' stand for?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't know", said Jonathan.

"Goodbye", said Dr. Evans.

"Goodbye, sir", said Jonathan. Dr. Evans went back to eating his meal. Maka was starting to get hungry, she wondered when she would be allowed to eat something. He probably wouldn't let her starve to death. But it took months for that to happen, theoretically the gag could stay in for weeks. Maybe she could remove the rags secretly and then eat something. But her owner said he would know if she removed the rags. Was he serious, or was he bluffing? What would happen to her if she was caught taking the rags out? The punishment would be much worse than what she was suffering at the moment. She also couldn't drink with the rags in. Unless he wanted her dead, he would let her take them out in a day or two. She didn't like the rags, but she also didn't want to figure out what lay in store for her if she was caught removing them without permission.

When her owner had finished his meal, she grabbed the dish and cleaned it. This would normally be when she got something to eat, and her stomach knew it. She went to find her owner playing piano in the living room. She hoped he would let her go to sleep. After her owner had finished playing the melody, he turned around.

"Make some tea", ordered her owner. Maka nodded. She went into the kitchen and started to prepare tea. This was the first time he ordered tea in the evening. After Maka had prepared the tea, she brought him the cup. Her owner took a sip.

"I don't want black tea, prepare a different one", said her owner and handed her the cup back. Maka quickly took the cup back into the kitchen, a poured the tea down the drain. She would have loved to drink it, but she couldn't. She wondered what kind of tea her owner would want. She looked into the pantry and found several kinds of tea. The labels on the end of the string had different colors. She didn't want to risk bringing him the wrong tea again, because he would probably let her get some sleep after he had drunk his tea, but he also might get angry, and she couldn't need another whipping right now. But how should she ask him what kind of tea he wanted without saying anything. She took one of each kind, except the black tea he had rejected, and brought them to her owner. He looked at the collection of teabags. He was unable to make a decision right away, so he closed his eyes and pointed at each bag once, before going backwards through them and eventually picking one out. It was the tea with the orange label. Maka prepared it and it smelled like apples. She brought him the apple tea and he drank it, looking satisfied.

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans. Maka wondered how she should communicate the thankfulness expected of her, as not doing so might get her in trouble. Maybe simply nodding would be enough. Maybe she should get on her knees. Maybe she should simply bow. She got on her knees.

"Good idea, scoot to your quarters on your knees", said Dr. Evans, " but lift your dress so it doesn't get dirty". As she did as she was ordered, Maka wished she would have tried a bow instead. Once she got to her quarter, she wondered if she could remove the rag. But would she get caught doing so? Probably not. She could take it out over the night and put it back in in the morning and no one would know, especially not her owner. Then her view fell on the spy hole. Her owner could be watching her this very moment without her knowing. He could be watching her all the time. She would have to sleep with the gag still in. She set the alarm to six o'clock and went to sleep.


	51. Hungry

She awoke the next day, after a rather restless night. It wasn't as bad like when she was chained in the slavers' truck, but worse than sharing a small bunk. It reminded her of one of the few times she had a cold and her nose was so stuffy that no air came through. What would be if she had a cold now? She would suffocate. But if her nose was stuffy, her owner would probably take the gag out. She had to prepare breakfast. Maybe he would let her take the rag out after he had eaten. It was killing her.

As she went to prepare breakfast, her stomach rumbled. She took some bread, which was a good basic food. This particular type of bread was rye bread. Her village used to regularly plant rye, along with wheat and oat. The cereals where transported away, the main food source were potatoes, since these could be planted almost anywhere. Maka had always wondered where the cereals that her village used to produce went. As far as she knew, it went to more industrial settlements, where they forged weapons and machinery for the president, since these settlements produced no food. What would happen to those now that her village had stopped producing food? The food production was carefully balanced, with one village completely wiped off the map, there would be shortages. Did Dr. Eisenberg destroy the fields with the unharvested crops, too, or did he only burn down the village. If the crops were safe, they would be able to salvage them. Then they would need to rebuild the village. How would they replace the lost population? Since the village's population had been scattered throughout New Nevada, therefore basically irrecoverable, they would probably do the same thing like they did when half of the population of another village was killed in a mudslide. They sent small squads of the Goverment Interest and Safety Department, also known as GISD, into other villages and take a randomly selected portion of the population and used them to repopulate the destroyed village. Then, after they would have restored her village's population, food production would be able to resume.

After she had cut several slices of bread, she put butter on the bread. Butter was very tasty, a good addition to any bread. Back in her village, butter was plentiful, the most common animal product after milk, to be exact. They only had to hand a small amount of the production over to the government, the rest they could use in any way they wanted. But they only wanted to eat it. They would never waste food, while they enjoyed a nutritious diet, they couldn't afford to waste food. It was a shock for Maka when she was ordered to throw out food by her owner. He must be a rich man.

After she had smeared butter on the bread, she but strawberry jam on it. Strawberry jam was also a common food in her village, due to the fact that it tasted good and could be stored for long periods of time. They couldn't grow many strawberries, because they needed the fields to grow cereals. However, there were plenty of wild strawberries around her village. She often spend days searching for strawberries and other berries, like raspberries, then Meme's mother would make jam out of them and give half of the jars to Maka's father. She would love to eat a bread of strawberry jam right now, but she would have to remain hungry. How long would she have to live with this dirty rag in her mouth. She should probably stop thinking about food, or her hunger would get worse. But it was so difficult not to think about food while one was preparing a meal.

Once she had finished the bread, she had to fight to take her attention of the food. How she wished she could eat it right now. Would her owner catch her? Theoretically he could come down any moment. But most likely he would come down in a three quarters of an hour. But he had told her that he would know if she took the gag out. In fact, if she ate now, it would count as two offenses. She leaned against the cold closet. Her back hurt from the whipping she had received yesterday. She definitively wanted to avoid another whipping. She went to check whether there was any mail, to stop herself from thinking about food.

There was plenty of mail in the mailbox. Maka wondered what kind of mail her owner received. She would have to restrain her curiosity. But maybe it was worth risking her life over the information contained in his mail. Or was it? Her owner was a lawyer. The mail he received were probably related to the cases he was working on. Knowing about what his clients were accused of would be completely useless. She would probably be not at all interested in this mail if she wasn't forbidden from opening it on pain of death. The paper however, was already open. She could read the headline without anyone noticing. It read "N-e-[?]-C-o-n-[?]-e-d-e-r-a-t-e-s-[?]-i-n-[?]-a-t -t-l-e". It took Maka some time to figure out what this headline meant. So the new Confederates had won a battle, bad news. This was either dumb luck or the paper was biased. Or the new confederates had similar troubles with warlords like her homeland and taken care of one. Even if they had won a battle, they would not win the war, West Wyoming's army had already advanced deep into their territory. It was impossible that the new Confederates won the war. West Wyoming had the best strategist of the world at it's disposal. The war was only a slight inconvenience for them, nothing serious. Maka could hear her owner moving around on the upper floor, so she quickly put down the paper and the rest of the mail and started to prepare the tea, it could not be long until her owner came down. And in fact, it was ten before seven. She would be able to finish making the tea before her owner came down. She wondered what kind of tea he wanted, so she prepared the apple tea she had made yesterday.


	52. A dangerous law

Once she had prepared the breakfast for her owner, she started to clean the kitchen. Not because it was necessary, but to distract herself from the food. She heard her owner coming downstairs. Dr. Evans ate his meal. Maka wondered whether he would take the rag out of her mouth now. She went into the dining room so that he could see her. He quickly looked up from his meal, but went right back to his meal, sipping his tea. She wondered what he was thinking about. Maybe she should make some noise. Or would that be a bad idea? Would she get punished for making noise? Would making noise accomplish anything? Was there anything she could do to get him to let her take the rag out? Maybe she should get on her knees. On the other hand, that didn't work the last time she tried it. She would have to make herself look pitiful. But wasn't she already a very pitiful sight? A hungry and gagged captive who had recently been whipped. Maybe she should try to start crying? But she couldn't cry on command. Maybe all she would have to do was to think of something sad. She thought about her capture. But she still couldn't get herself to cry.

Dr. Evans had finished his meal and went in the direction of his office. Maka picked up the dishes and washed them. After she had finished, there was a knock on the door. Maka, interested in who could be knocking on the door in the early hours of the morning, went to open the door, but also because she was probably supposed to. Her owner was about to open the door, but he saw her, so he stepped back from the door. Maka opened the door for him. On the other side was tidily dressed man with black hair.

"Good day, Mr. Conway", said Dr. Evans, taking out his watch and looking at the time, "On time, like always".

"Good day, Dr. Evans", said Mr. Conway, looking past Dr. Evans at Maka, "I see you got yourself a slave. A rather disobedient one, by the looks of it".

"Yes, yesterday she insulted my neighbor", said Dr. Evans.

"That can probably be cured by a sound trashing", said Mr. Conway.

"Exactly what I did", said Dr. Evans, "Maybe I should get another slave to punish her, my arm is always sore after whipping her". Mr. Conway laughed politely.

"Maybe you could just borrow your neighbor's slave for that", said Mr. Conway.

"Louis is almost never home, in fact, he's going to leave soon", said Dr. Evans. Maka liked how she knew something her owner didn't, it filled her with a smug satisfaction.

"Well, we should talk about my case now", said Mr. Conway.

"Let's go into my office", said Dr. Evans before he led the man into his office. Maka wondered what Mr. Conway was accused of. It couldn't be something too bad, otherwise they wouldn't let him walk around freely. Maybe he was some sort of fraud. Maka began doing the laundry. On the washing machine lay a clean rag. If she had only found this rag yesterday. Altough one rag wouldn't really have been that useful. Meme brought Ms. Nakatsukasa a clean rag and a dirty one, and Ms. Nakatsukasa deliberately chose the dirty one. Her owner would have probably done the same. She went upstairs into her owner's room to collect his dirty clothes. It wasn't really much laundry, so maybe she should wait until there was more laundry there, so she could do it all in one go, thus saving herself time. She would do that.

"Maka", yelled Dr. Evans from his office. Maka hurried into his office, from where he had called her. He was indeed in his office. Maka wondered what she should do now. Normally, she would now say "Yes, master?", but she couldn't say anything right now. Maybe she should get on her knees. But she had already tried that yesterday. She made a small bow.

"Make us coffee", ordered Dr. Evans. What is coffee? How could she prepare coffee if she didn't even know what coffee is. How could she communicate her lack of knowledge to her owner? Maybe she should shrug, as this is a common gesture to show "I don't know". But what if he interpreted it as a sing of defiance. Maybe even open defiance. She didn't want to know what the punishment for that was. But what else should she do? She couldn't go into the kitchen and prepare coffee, as she didn't know what coffee is.

"What are you waiting for?", asked Mr. Conway. She had to say something. No gesture something. But what?

"Do you know what coffee is?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka shook her head, glad that her owner had realized that he had never ordered her to make coffee before.

"I'll explain to you later", said Dr. Evans, before he turned to his client, "how does tea sound?"

"Guess it will have to do", said Mr. Conway. As Maka left to prepare the tea, she could hear them discussing strategy. Maka wondered whether her owner would win the trial for his client. Maka hoped he would. If he won the trial, he would probably be in a good mood. Then he would treat her better, maybe let her go to sleep early. As she brought the two men their tea, they had forgotten to specify what kind of tea they wanted, so she had chosen apple tea, she overheard them talking about the trial.

"That Marie is problematic", said Mr. Conway.

"Slaves can only testify under torture, so it will be easy to manipulate her testimony", said Dr. Evans, "but we still shouldn't rely on it". So the punishment for witnessing a crime was torture. If Maka ever witnessed a crime, she would keep her mouth shut. Who on earth thought tormenting witnesses to a crime was a good idea. As any child could tell you, you only torture subjects, so that they would confess.

"I heard there are exceptions to that rule", said Mr. Conway.

"Yes, if the crime in question is high treason, or the slave is running one of the owner's businesses for him", explained Dr. Evans, "But that second exception only applies if the case is related to the business in question". Maka knew she shouldn't eavesdrop, but what they were talking about was very interesting. Maka knew she had to bring the tea soon, or they would get inpatient, so she opened the door.


	53. Unmuted

"I hope they won't overdo it, thought. I can't stand the screaming", said Mr Conway, not yet having noticed Maka.

"I'm afraid that's something you'll have to endure", said Dr. Evans, they seemed to be completely oblivious to her. Maybe she should make some noise to get noticed. Maybe she should wait until they noticed her.

"Seems Maka has finished the tea", said Dr. Evans. Maka stepped closer, to hand them their cups.

"About time. She's really slow", said Mr. Conway, "but I'm sure that can be cured with a sound trashing as well". Dr. Evans checked his watch.

"Well, she actually only needed seven minutes", said Dr. Evans.

"I thought it was longer", said Mr. Conway, taking his cup.

"Well, on the subject of the case, another issue is Mr. Malooney's testimony", said Dr. Evans, "What does he know?".

"Could you tell your slave to give us some privacy first?", asked Mr. Conway.

"I understand, this is a very sensitive case. I will lock her in her quarters", said Dr. Evans. Maka knew what she had to do, so she went to her quarter. Dr. Evans and Mr. Conway followed her closely. Once she had entered her quarter, they closed the door behind her. Then it was locked with a click. Maka wondered why they had locked her in her quarter. Obviously so that she couldn't eavesdrop. Which raised the question again of what Mr Conway was accused of. They were discussing information that she must not be allowed to know under any circumstances, but what? Maybe she could hear them if she put her ears on the wall. She picked a spot under the spyhole, so that she could not be seen. Then she listened attentively to any sound that she could hear. She heard the sound of her ear brushing against the wall, but nothing else. She continued to listen for a few minutes, before she realized that she wouldn't hear anything. What did Jonathan say he did when Louis K. locked him in. Enjoy the time off? That actually seemed like a good idea, she couldn't do anything at this time, anyway. She lay down on the bed, and turned to the wall side, covering herself with the blanket. She tried to go to sleep, and after a while, she actually fell asleep.

"Wake up", said her owner. Maka woke up, feeling incredibly tired. Why was she so tired? She wasn't tired when she went to sleep, and now she was even more tired. She probably wouldn't be this tired if she had simply stayed awake. She just hoped her owner wouldn't get angry. She got up on her feet and faced him, awaiting orders.

"In case you haven't noticed, it will be lunchtime soon", said Dr. Evans. How many people would she have to cook for? Was the client still here? She would cook for two, just in case. Maka went into the kitchen, and started to boil some potatoes. She knew several hundred ways to prepare potatoes, most involved boiling them. Maka used to eat potatoes almost every day until her capture. She always peeled them so that the peel was paper thin. It would have been such a disgrace to waste food. How she wished she could eat one of these potatoes now. But if she did that, her owner would find out. Would he? Maybe, but she better not risk it. If he the rag was still in by tomorrow, she would try to sneakily eat something. After she had finished preparing the potatoes, she wondered for how many people she should set the table, as the client may still be there. If she set for only one person, she might insult him. But if she set for two people, her owner might get angry. She would have to guess. She set the table for one person. If the client was still there, she could set the table for him, too. This way, if she underestimated the number of people, her mistake would be easier to fix.

"Come here", ordered her owner after he had eaten his meal. Maka didn't know what to expect. He could take the rag out, or he could slap her for some perceived mistake. She stepped up to him. He turned her around and removed the covering rag. Then he turned her around and removed the other rag as well. Maka's jaw, or rather it's muscle had become sore from being in an uncomfortable position this long. At first, she found it difficult to close her mouth. She should probably say something.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, her jaw hurting with every word.

"Be warned that if I hear similar complaints again, the rag will stay in for a lot longer", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She wondered whether she would be allowed to eat now. After all, there was a lot leftover and she was hungry. Her owner left the room, and Maka carried the dishes back into the kitchen. Was she allowed to eat now? What would happen if she was caught eating something? Wait, he said that she would get no food as long as the gag was in. So she was allowed to eat now. She grabbed herself a spoon and ate the meal directly out of the pot, after all, she would have to clean the pot later. And this way, she would have to clean less plates. After she had finished cleaning the dishes, she wondered what she was supposed to do. The house was clean, every room having been cleaned in the last week. However, the living room had only been cleaned partially. And the office hadn't been cleaned. But she wasn't allowed in the office. She would clean the living room. She started by sweeping it, even though she didn't really know why, as the floor had already been swept. Then she mopped the floor. She would have to do something about the carpet. As far as she knew, the proper way to clean a carpet was to hang it up and to beat it. She should probably do that, or her owner might hang her up and beat her.

"Maka! Come into my office right now!", yelled her owner.


	54. An impossible task

"Yes, master?", asked Maka, hoping that she wasn't in trouble.

"Clean my office, I'll be watching", said Dr. Evans

"Yes, master", said Maka before she went to fetch a broom, which was still standing in the living room. She would have to be extremely careful when cleaning the office, there was probably a reason why she wasn't normally allowed to enter the office. She probably shouldn't touch anything on the desk or the the shelves. Her owner was occupied with his work, as she was doing her work. After she had finished sweeping the floor, she fetched a mop and a bucket of water. Her owner seemed satisfied with her work. Or maybe he was satisfied with his own work, whatever he was working on, probably Mr. Conway's case.

"I noticed you cook potatoes more frequently than anything else", said Dr. Evans. Maka stopped with her work and looked at him, she didn't expect that.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"I'm not angry about that", said Dr. Evans, "I just wonder why".

"I know potatoes better than any other kind of food, master", said Maka.

"Says a lot about the place you're from", said Dr. Evans. Maka wanted to ask "like what?", but feared what he would do to her if she did that.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "Should I get back to work now, master?".

"Certainly", said Dr. Evans. He got up from his desk and went to browse the bookshelf. He took out a heavy gray book and went back to his desk. On the way he slipped on the wet floor. Maka tried to catch him, but she failed. He would probably blame her for his accident.

"I'm sorry, master. Should I help you up, master?", asked Maka worriedly. He had broken his fall with his left hand, protecting the book with his right hand. Her owner didn't answer, getting up by himself. He then went back to his desk and began reading his book. Maka was worried about whether he would punish her or not. Maybe she should ask. But maybe he wasn't going to punish her but would do so if she brought it up in any way.

"Are you angry with me because you slipped on the floor, master?", asked Maka.

"No, but if you don't shut up, I will be", said Dr. Evans. Maka quietly did her work. After she had finished the floor, she fetched the feather duster and began to dust the bookshelves.

"Don't do that", said her owner. Maka put the feather duster away and went back into her owner's office, not knowing what to do, so she just looked at him.

"I see you have finished cleaning", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Go back to whatever you were doing before I called you", said Dr. Evans. Maka went back to cleaning the living room, so she dusted all non floor surfaces again. Once she was done, she wondered what she should do. If her owner caught her not doing any work, he would get angry with her. She decided to do the laundry. After she had finished, she went to report to her owner. Then she remembered what happened the last time she had told her owner the laundry was finished. Then she realized that her owner wouldn't really notice that she wasn't doing her work, because there currently was little work to do. Therefore, it was impossible for him to verify whether she did any work. At least until the rooms needed to get cleaned again.

Looking at the alarm clock in her room revealed that she still had several hours until dinner had to be on the table. Her owner was distracted with his work, she would have plenty of time to devote to her escape preparations, so she started to dig through the junk room in case there was anything useful. However she soon found out that there was mostly junk in it. The few objects that could not be considered junk were household objects she used anyway, like the ironing board or the mop.

"What are you doing?", asked Dr. Evans. He was onto her. What should she tell him? She could impossibly tell him the truth. She would have to lie. But what should she tell him?

"I'm cleaning the junk room, master", said Maka.

"I find that hard to believe", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm telling the truth, master", said Maka.

"You're not planning on throwing anything away without my permission? Are you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"No, master, I'm just sorting them so the junk room looks orderly", said Maka.

"That's actually a good idea, do that", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, glad that she could dispel her owner's suspicion. Sorting the junk room turned out to be an extremely difficult task. She couldn't quite decide how she should sort the junk, which was cluttered, taking up two thirds of the room. The room was also very small, even slightly smaller than her quarter. The clutter looked like it was about to come alive and eat her, then her owner. It had probably been accumulated over generations. Maka didn't even know how she should approach the task. She would just pull out objects at random and put them back somewhere else where it would appear to make more sense.

After she had found several very curious objects, like a small yellow sculpture of a duckling, made from an unknown material, over the course of several hours, in which she only succeeded in turning the pile around a bit, she was worried about how her owner would react to this. He would probably do something nasty to her. She hoped that there was only a whipping waiting for her. But her owner would know that he has given her an impossible task. Maybe he didn't. If she could convince him that what he asked of her was impossible, maybe he wouldn't punish her. How should she approach him with the news of her failure. She would tell him while he was eating his dinner, which she should probably start to prepare now.


	55. A past investment

She quickly prepared the dinner, and served it to her owner, who had arrived at the table a minute early. This would probably be the best time to tell him that it would be impossible to clean out the junk room without throwing anything away.

"Master, I'm sorry, but I was unable to sort the junk room", said Maka.

"How much bread is left?" asked her owner.

"Not much, master. But what should I do about the junk room?", asked Maka.

"You will have to buy bread tomorrow, Tsubaki opens the bakery at six o'clock", said Dr. Evans, "As for the junk room, forget about it".

"Yes, master", said Maka, this went better than expected. And tomorrow, she would be able to talk to Ms. Nakatsukasa again. With any luck, it would be possible to experiment on her old collar. The rest of the evening went by as usual. Dr. Evans went to play his piano before he let Maka go to sleep. Maka wondered to when she should set her alarm clock. Bakers baked their baked goods early in the morning, right before they opened their bakery. At least, that's how the baker in her village used to do it, and she doubted that it was in any way different here. She would have to buy the bread before breakfast, because she had eaten all the bread that was left. But Ms. Nakatsukasa, whose first name was apparently Tsubaki, would probably have the most customers in the first hour after she opened her bakery. The best way to talk to her in private would be to arrive as early as possible. Since the bakery was about a quarter of an hour walk away, she set her alarm clock to half past five.

When the alarm rung, Maka was instantly on her feet with excitement about her conversation with Ms. Nakatsukasa. She didn't expect to achieve anything significant. But if she wanted to play it safe, she would have to take small steps. She picked up the thousand dollar bill her owner had left on the dining table and a bag. After a short walk, she arrived at the bakery. She didn't exactly know how long it took her to reach the bakery, therefore she didn't know what time it was, but since the bakery was still closed, it must have been before six o'clock. Through the glass in the front door, she could see Ms. Nakatsukasa talking to Meme, who wasn't gagged anymore. Ms. Nakatsukasa was was gesturing aggressively, Meme was looking at the floor, occasionally forming a few words with her lips, only to be shouted down by Ms Nakatsukasa, who was obviously very angry. Maka wondered what Meme had done wrong, and what would happen to her, Ms. Nakatsukasa would probably not leave it at a scolding. Maybe she could get Ms. Nakatsukasa to show some mercy towards Meme. But how? Telling her about Meme's reputation for being mentally challenged, which she had acquired over her youth, would be a very bad move, since she wanted to help Meme. Ms. Nakatsukasa would probably be very agitated. Maka would have to be extremely careful. After Ms. Nakatsukasa had finished scolding Meme, she unlocked the door to the bakery.

"Good morning Ms. Nakatsukasa.", said Maka as she entered the bakery.

"Good morning Maka", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "What can I get you?".

"A rye bread", said Maka.

"That would be seven hundred fifty dollars", said Ms Nakatsukasa, and Maka payed.

"Seems like Meme's causing trouble again", said Maka, pointing at Meme, who was still standing there.

"What?", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, turning around to Meme, "Why, she's just standing there".

"You seemed pretty angry with her earlier", said Maka.

"A moment, please", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, turning to Meme once again, "Clean the backroom".

"Yes, misstress", said Meme before she went into the backroom.

"She forgot to cut into the buns before baking them, now they're all soggy", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "These are fifty percent off, by the way, if you're interested".

"Thank you, Ms. Nakatsukasa, but my master would become very angry if I bought anything he didn't tell me to buy".

"Dr. Evans is known for his attention to detail", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Say, why did you become a baker?", asked Maka.

"My master paid for my apprenticeship", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Why did he do that?", asked Maka.

"It's generally a good investment. Train a young slave, they can't work as hard yet anyway, then rent them to whoever's interested", explained Ms. Nakatsukasa, "that brings the money back in about three years and after that it will just keep coming until the slave is too old to work".

"Sounds smart", said Maka, "what time is it?"

"There's a clock right there", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, pointing at a point above and behind Maka. It was five past six.

"Thank you", said Maka, she should probably ask Ms. Nakatsukasa about her old slave collar soon, before other customers came, "Say, when they let you go, did they let you keep your collar?"

"Yes, why do you ask?", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I was just wondering", said Maka, resisting an urge to scratch the back of her left hand, "did you keep it?".

"Yes, it reminds me of my childhood", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"How was your childhood anyway?", asked Maka.

"Good morning, Ms. Nakatsukasa", said a young slave, apparently also having been sent to buy bread. Maka said goodbye as Ms. Nakatsukasa turned her attention to the other customer. Maka walked back to her owner's house, contemplating the conversation. She hadn't really achieved anything. Meme probably disliked her now, after she had talked bad about her in her presence. But she could also confirm that Ms. Nakatsukasa still had her old collar. The question was now, how to gain possession of it. Meme could steal it for her, but would Meme do that for her after she had talked badly about her in front of her, to her owner. On the other hand, Meme was not known for holding on to grudges, to the contrary, she was quite forgetful.


	56. Before the auction

Maka arrived at her owner's house and prepared his breakfast.

"I'm going to attend an auction today", said her owner. Did that mean she would have to prepare a meal less?

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"You will have to carry the stuff I'm going to buy", said Dr. Evans. How much would he buy, and how heavy would it be?

"Yes, master, should I use a wheelbarrow, master?", asked Maka.

"I doubt that will be necessary", said Dr. Evans, before continuing to eat his meal. Maka didn't know whether she should look forward to the auction or not. She would only have to carry a bunch of stuff. But maybe it would be interesting to watch the auction. Depending on how the thing would be organized. Maybe she would just have to come once the auction was over and then carry all the stuff for her owner. What kind of auction was he attending, anyway. A slave auction, perhaps. No, his house lacked the necessary quarters to house any more than one slave. Maybe he wanted to replace her. On the other hand, that was unlikely. She wondered why she was afraid of getting sold again. Maybe because there were a lot of people who would be worse owners than Dr. Evans was. Or was it because he had threatened to sell her somewhere extremely bad if she turned out to be a bad investment. She didn't really know.

Maybe it was an art auction. This would be good, because paintings would be easy to carry. Then she remembered the discussion he had during the dinner. Louis K had told them about an auction where they would sell all of a poor widow's property to pay the debt she had amassed. Or rather, that her late husband had amassed. What would happen to the widow if they couldn't raise the money to pay her debts. Probably the same thing that happened to Liz. Maka wished she could do anything to help this poor woman.

At some time in the afternoon, her owner told her that he would soon be going to the auction, and that she should clean herself. That probably meant that he was going to take her along. Maka wondered why. She certainly hadn't any money to bid in the auction, and it would be enough if she came after the auction was finished to pick up the stuff. After they had left, she was following her owner, walking two steps behind him, it occurred to her that she didn't know where the auction would be held. If her owner let her come later to pick up the stuff, he would still have to show her where the auction was being held. He just didn't want to make two trips.

The auction was being held in a large building. It was probably an auction hall, even though one would not guess that from the exterior, but Maka didn't have the time to read what was written over the entrance. In the foyer, they met Ms. Nakatsukasa, she was wearing an elegant yet simple black dress that put emphasis on her physique, without revealing anything indecent.

"Good day, fair lady", said Dr. Evans.

"Good day, Dr. Evans", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"This dress looks beautiful on you", said Dr. Evans.

"Thanks", said Ms Nakatsukasa.

"I see you're attending the auction, too", said Dr. Evans.

"I hope to buy a new commode", said Ms Nakatsukasa, "Why are you here?".

"Why shouldn't I be?", asked Dr. Evans.

"You're rich, you could buy anything that is being sold today new, without it even making a dent into your fortune", said Ms Nakatsukasa.

"I'm only here to drive the prices up a little, to help that poor lady", said Dr. Evans.

"Do you expect to bring them up high enough to pay her debt?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"No", answered Dr. Evans.

"Then why bother and give her false hope?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Do you know what happens with the leftover debt if she is sold?", asked Dr. Evans, "Or with the leftover money if the auction doesn't cover it but selling her covers it?".

"No, never thought about it, to be honest", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"If there is any leftover debt, it doesn't get erased", explained Dr. Evans.

"Then who has to pay it?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"She does", said Dr. Evans.

"But how, slaves don't have any income?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"When she is sold, an moratorium is imposed on all of the outstanding debts she owes", explained Josef K, who had joined the conversation, "If she gets free again in a legal way, the moratorium is lifted"

"Does that mean she still has to pay them back?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, and she will have a month to do so", explained Josef K., "if that month expires, they will once again auction of her property, probably only consisting of the clothes she's wearing and some random stuff she accumulated, my landlady's slave, for example, has a ball of yarn and some sewing equipment. If it doesn't cover the debt again, which is very likely, she will be sold into slavery again". Maka gasped. So this was the situation Liz was in. Even if her owner decided to let her go, she would only be free for a month. Given that there was nowhere Liz could run, she would probably remain a slave for the rest of her live. Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed equally troubled by Josef K's explanation, she probably imagined herself as the woman whose property was being auctioned off.

"How much does she owe?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Roughly thirty billion dollars", said Josef K.

"That's three times my yearly income", said Dr. Evans. "Not counting the interest from my inheritance".

"You're lucky, I would have to work until I'm as old as my old master to earn even a half of that", lamented Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Dr. Eisenberg earns that in a few successful expeditions", said Josef K.

"What did he study, anyway?", asked Ms Nakatsukasa.

"There he is, let's ask him", said Dr. Evans, "Hey Dr. Josef Eisenberg!".

"What is?", asked Dr. Eisenberg.

"We were kinda wondering what your doctorate is", said Josef K.

"Ethics", said Dr. Eisenberg.


	57. Maka's education

"Sounds like it was a total waste of time", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Shut up! At least I'm educated", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"At least I know something that's actually useful in the real world", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"At least I'm rich", said Dr. Eisenberg. Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed to be unable to figure out a way to retort.

"At least my profession isn't illegal", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Technically, I operate with the approval of the government. I'm a privateer", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"Don't privateers use ships and operate on the sea?", asked Josef K.

"I'm a land privateer", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"But why did you study ethics when you could have studied law?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Or economics", added Josef K.

"I just did", said Dr Eisenberg, trying to change the subject, "What do you think about the war in Wyoming? I personally must say that I profit immensely".

"I hope West Wyoming wins", said Dr. Evans, Maka suddenly liked him a lot more, "I made a bet with Louis K over the war. Loser has to buy the winner a magazine subscription". Maka appreciation for her owner went away as suddenly as it has appeared.

"You made a bet with my brother over the outcome of a war?", asked Josef K., "You could just have bought him a magazine subscription right away and saved some time".

"He's not clairvoyant", said Dr. Evans.

"He's an arms dealer, predicting the outcome of international conflicts and rebel activity is part of his job", said Josef K.

"I don't really know much about the conflict", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "But I would say that West Wyoming is winning". Maka silently agreed. Richard grabbed Dr. Eisenberg, to stop him from falling over from laughting. Maka wondered what was so funny.

"You don't know much about warfare, do you?", asked Dr. Eisenberg.

"No, but I heard the war was started over ideological differences", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, they disagree on the form of government", said Dr. Evans, "and economic principles".

"I don't understand a thing", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Why did you bring Maka along?".

"To carry the stuff I'm going to buy at the auction", explained Dr. Evans, "Why didn't you bring your slave along to carry your stuff?"

"I left Meme at the bakery to watch the register",said Ms Nakatsukasa.

"You sure she can do that?", asked Josef K., "She seems a bit daft to me".

"She didn't screw up the last time", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Was that last time Friday?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, why do you ask", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Your slave insulted me, and I later told my slave to deliver a letter of complaint", said Dr. Evans, "Did you receive that letter?".

"Yes, and she has been punished, severely", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "When I said screw up, I meant something like over- or undercharging a customer".

"The auction is starting soon", said Josef K, checking his watch, "You should take a seat, I need to go and check on the trainee". Then Josef K went away and Ms. Nakatsukasa went into the auction hall.

"Wait here for me until the auction is done", said Dr. Evans to Maka.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Warte auf mich bis die Versteigerung beended ist", said Dr. Eisenberg to Vanessa.

"Jawohl, mein Herr", said Vanessa. Maka and Vanessa both watched as their owners went into the auction hall.

"You're here to carry stuff, too?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Vanessa, a tone of bitterness in her voice.

"Do you think they will buy a lot of stuff?", asked Maka.

"I hope not", said Vanessa, "this is the first time I have to do that".

"So it's the first time he attends such an auction?", asked Maka.

"No", said Vanessa.

"Then why is this the first time you have to carry things he buys at an auction?", asked Maka.

"He normally delegates this task to one of his lesser slaves", said Vanessa.

"And why does he make you do it today?", asked Maka.

"I don't want to talk about it", said Vanessa. Why did Dr. Eisenberg order his assistant to do such lowly work? Maybe there was necessity, like all the other slaves being sick. How sick would they have to be, so that this cruel man would let them stay in bed? Very sick. How many slaves did Dr. Eisenberg have besides Vanessa and Richard? Probably too many for all of them to fall sick at the same time. If Vanessa hadn't been delegated to load bearer out of necessity, then why was it done? Maybe she was being punished. It must be an insignificant offense, if the punishment was only carrying some loads.

"You're being punished, right?", asked Maka.

"Congratulations, Sherlock", said Vanessa.

"My last name's not Sherlock, it's...", said Maka.

"Sorry, forgot you can't read", interrupted Vanessa.

"I can read", complained Maka.

"Not according to our accountant", said Vanessa.

"Okay, I don't know all the letters, but I still was at the top of my class", said Maka.

"That reflects terribly on that godforsaken place you're from", said Vanessa.

"I only went to school for two years", said Maka, angry about Vanessa's insult towards her hometown.

"When I attended school, I was able to read after a year and a half", said Vanessa.

"That's impossible", said Maka.

"It may have been impossible for your school, education in West Wyoming is horribly biased", said Vanessa. Maka didn't know what "biased" meant, but it was obviously negative.

"No it's not", said Maka.

"Okay, let's settle this in a reasonable manner", said Vanessa.

"How, a duel to the death, winner eats the loser's heart?", mocked Maka.

"No, of course not, you'd probably end up on a fuel farm if you caused this much property damage", said Vanessa, "I'm simply going to ask you, what did they teach besides reading and writing?".

"We learned about the glorious history of our country, why we should be proud of it and it's invincible army", explained Maka, "About the president's humble life, how he build West Wyoming with his own two hands".

"That's actually a textbook example of a biased education", said Vanessa.

"Oh, well, what did you learn besides reading and writing?", yelled Maka.

"We learned about mathematics and about natural science", said Vanessa with a smug smile, "During the first two years, later we learned about history, physics, chemistry, biology, music, art, Latin, English, literature and religion".


	58. Executions

"That sounds like it was even more biased", said Maka.

"Do you even know what biased means?", asked Vanessa.

"It means that something is", said Maka, desperately trying to think of a way to complete the sentence.

"I will enlighten you, then. It means that someone shows unfair favor towards a group, person or idea", explained Vanessa.

"Then how is my education biased?", asked Maka.

"Because you were mostly taught that Ligua is great", said Vanessa.

"Well, he is", said Maka.

"No, he isn't", said Vanessa.

"LaLaLa can't hear you", chanted Maka, sticking her fingers into her ears. Vanessa remained silent, because Maka would not listen to her insults towards her homeland. In the meantime, the auction seemed to have started, they were currently selling some clothes. She couldn't really follow the bidding, but her owner didn't seem to be bidding for the item, which was a good thing. The item, she didn't know what it was, but it sounded like it was some sort of dress, was sold to the "black haired lady in the matching dress", for the price of a loaf of bread. Maka was as if could hear the previous owner sobbing.

Then they auctioned a painting. It was apparently a picture of the whole family, the starting bid was one dollar. Maka doubted the painting was worth that much to anyone not pictured on it, otherwise they would have named the artist. Maka wondered if the frame was worth something, but judging from the price, she doubted that there was a frame at all. It probably was a cheap painting, painted by a starving wandering artist, maybe in exchange for shelter over the night and a warm meal. Her family used to have one of these paintings. It had probably been destroyed during the raid, but Maka would give all her possessions if she could see the painting again. On the other hand, she actually only possessed the clothes on her body, and even that was arguable, a lawyer would say they belonged to Dr. Evans. Maka wished she could buy this painting, to keep it for the family, but what would happen if it didn't get sold? Who would get it? Maybe it would be destroyed. After several minutes of silence the auctioneer lowered the starting bid to five hundred mille. Then Dr. Eisenberg bid ten thousand dollars, no body bid against him. Sold, to the "gentleman with the scary bodyguard". Maka looked at Vanessa, who seemed displeased at the fact that her owner bought something.

As the auction dragged on, Maka found it more and more unbearable to listen to the auction. For nearly each and every item they sold, she could think of a similar item her family used to own before the raid. Well, her father was a farmer and she doubted they would sell a scythe, but she could understand what this was like. This woman was being enslaved, slow and methodical. It must be horrible for her, Maybe even worse than it was for Maka and the rest of the people in her village. What was happening to this woman, was like somebody cutting small pieces out of you, starting small, a finger cap here, a toe there. Then, once all the small stuff was gone, the executioner would move on to what was left of hand and feet. After these had been taken care of, the limbs would go, and then the head. Whereas what happened to Maka was more like death by firing squat. She found it curious that she used this metaphor, seeing that she thought she would face a literal firing squad.

"You look pale, you alright?", asked Vanessa.

"I'm fine", said Maka.

"You don't look fine", said Vanessa. Maka remained silent for a while.

"This auction reminds me of an execution I once watched", said Maka, "They cut the convict to pieces, starting small, then moving on to larger and larger extremities, until they cut off his head".

"What does that have to do with the auction?", asked Vanessa.

"Nothing", said Maka.

"What was the guy accused of?", asked Vanessa.

"Treason, all the village had to watch it, but my father held my eyes shut, so I could only hear it", said Maka.

"Making the group watch one of them get punished", said Vanessa, "certainly keeps them in line".

"It was the only execution for treason I ever watched, so I guess it works", said Maka.

"I know", said Vanessa, "or maybe everybody else was smart enough not to get caught".

"Impossible, the Government Interest and Safety Department finds all traitors", said Maka.

"These guys who keep sending assassins to kill Dr. Eisenberg?", asked Vanessa.

"They are?", asked Maka, with a glimmer of hope in her voice.

"Richard does a good job of keeping the assassins from completing their mission", said Vanessa, "the other slaves always make bets about the next assassin's appearance".

"That's macabre", said Maka.

"Dr. Eisenberg also doesn't like it, he had one slave executed for betting a red button on the next assassin being blond", said Vanessa.

"How did they kill him?", asked Maka.

"Zamochit, Richard did the deed", said Vanessa, "the scary thing was that Richard didn't use any tools".

"What's zamochit?", asked Maka.

"Breaking every bone in the body, one by one", explained Vanessa.

"That sounds painful", said Maka.

"It's always interested which method of execution people prefer", said Vanessa, "Dr. Blackstar, for example, fed one of his slaves to ants".

"And how does Louis K kill his slaves?", asked Maka.

"He never did anything like that, he owned a slave before he got Jonathan, but he let that guy go", said Vanessa.

"What happened to him then?", asked Maka.

"He got a job measuring land in some village", said Vanessa.

"Nice", said Maka, she wished she could trade places with this guy.

"Apparently, the village doesn't actually need a surveyor", said Vanessa, "but if they'd fire him, the village's administration would have to admit to a mistake"

"So?", asked Maka.

"They still pay him, but he isn't allowed to do any work", said Vanessa.

"Sounds like a dream job", said Maka.


	59. Blair visits again

**Dear Readers,**

**I wont be able to update over the weekend. I apologize for the inconvenience.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated**

"As far as I know, he's dead now", said Vanessa.

"How did he die?", asked Maka.

"He got very sick and died", said Vanessa.

"Talk about bad luck", said Maka, Vanessa remained silent for a few minutes. Meanwhile they were auctioning a commode. Maka heard Ms. Nakatsukasa bid on it. After a few minutes of bidding, she had bought it. The next item to be auctioned was a sculpture by the influential west Mexican artist "Literal", which Maka found was a pretty stupid pseudonym, called "One cubic meter of solid lead". Vanessa went pale as Dr. Eisenberg bid on it.

"What's a cubic meter?", asked Maka.

"It's the volume of a cube one meter on each side", explained Vanessa.

"What's a meter?", asked Maka.

"It's an old unit of measurement, still used in Europe and Asia", said Vanessa, as Dr. Evans bid on the cube, her face seemed to regain it's color.

"How long is a meter?", asked Maka.

"This long", said Vanessa, stretching her arms. Maka knew that lead was really heavy. So a cubic meter of that stuff would be impossible to carry. She hoped that her owner wouldn't buy it. Then he did. Maka hoped he would at least let her use some small cart to pull it on. The auction, apparently having moved on to the stupid stuff people are embarrassed to admit they own, like a cubic meter of lead, couldn't last much longer. In fact, they only auctioned two more items, and the hall started to empty. She spotted her owner, who also spotted her.

"Here, hold this for me", ordered Dr. Evans, handing her a small cube.

"Yes, master", said Maka, taking the cube, which was surprisingly heavy. She only had a vague idea of how long a meter was, but this cube was definitively not a meter on each side.

"Is this the one cubic meter cube you bought, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes, you see, the artist scaled it down by a factor of ten", said Dr. Evans, "Eventually, he got lynched for it". Maka would have lynched that guy, too. What the hell is art about a cube? An ridiculously heavy cube at that. Ms. Nakatsukasa pushed her commode through the door, the clothes she bought lying on top.

"You sure you can carry this?", asked Dr. Evans, "I can have my slave help if you want".

"No thanks", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "she has probably enough problems carrying that lead cube you bought".

"Vanessa could help", suggested Dr. Eisenberg.

"Why are you making her carry, you have plenty of other, less valuable, slaves?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"She spilled coffee in one of their face, he ended up falling down the stairs, breaking his leg", said Dr. Eisenberg, "As punishment, she has to do his work in addition to her own".

"That's very mild", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Dr. Eisenberg handed Vanessa the painting he bought terribly overpriced.

"I'm very merciful", said Dr. Eisenberg.

"I'm sure I could find a lot of people who would disagree", said Dr. Evans.

"You can find any opinion about anyone, if you search long enough", said Dr Eisenberg.

"I should get going", said Dr Evans. Maka followed him. He seemed to be in a rather good mood, despite the fact that he bought a useless lead cube. Maka wondered whether he actually had any use for the lead cube, or if he just bought it out of pity.

"Master?", Maka hesitated, how would he react if she questioned something he did.

"Yes?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Where should I put the lead cube after you have arrived home?", asked Maka.

"I'll take it from there", said Dr. Evans. They passed the town square on the way. Maka was moving the cube from arm to arm, to avoid straining herself. Her owner stopped to buy a bunch of apples, spending some time haggling with the merchant over some perceived mistake in the apples. He then bought a bag from the merchant, and had him put the apples in it. Then he handed the bag to Maka. The apples weighed nothing compared to the cube. After a while, her owner took one of the apples out and ate it.

"Because you cooked so good today, you may eat an apple, if you want to", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She picked a niece apple for herself, not too nice, her owner would want the best ones for himself, but not one of the worst, either. She ate the entire apple, the center was a bit chewy.

"Wow, you actually ate the center of the apple", said Dr. Evans, "Voluntarily".

"Yes, master", said Maka. He was obviously much nicer to her when he was in a good mood. She should take advantage of his good mood while it lasted. But how? Maybe she could ask earlier than usual if she might retire for the evening. On the other hand, it would probably be wise not to push it. She quietly followed him to his house. Once there, he took the cube and carried it in his office. Maka wondered what he would use it for. Maybe she should ask.

"Master, may I ask you a question?", asked Maka.

"No", said her owner. Maka then went to prepare dinner, noticing Blair sitting on the outside of the kitchen window. Should she let Blair in? Dr. Evans had said that Blair was always welcome, right before throwing her out. Her owner had started to play his piano. Maybe she should ask him. Blair had also noticed her, and knocked her head against the window. Maka went to ask her owner.

"Master, there's that cat, I think it wants to enter", said Maka. Dr. Evans stopped playing the piano and looked up, slightly annoyed.

"Let her in", said Dr. Evans. Maka obeyed. Blair went to Dr. Evans, who had resumed playing the piano, and meowed along, forming a hideous cacophony. When Maka served the dinner, Dr. Evans ordered her to cut up a piece of fish for Blair. He seemed to really like this cat. Why was it wearing a witch hat? The cat started to eat the raw fish greedily. Once Dr. Evans had eaten, Maka ate for herself and cleaned the dishes, then she got permission to go to sleep.


	60. A convention

The next few days passed without any particular incidents. Maka didn't manage to get in anyway closer to being able to escape, so she obeyed her owner in order to avoid trouble, which was her only reason for obeying him. On Wednesday, after she had prepared breakfast, he sent her buy some groceries for him. On the way to the market, she noticed an alleyway, which she later passed again, she concluded it to be a shortcut, as it through a block of houses she would otherwise have to walk around. She decided to try this shortcut on the way back. What's the worst that could happen? She could get mugged, or raped, or murdered. But that was unlikely. She didn't really look like somebody who's worth the trouble of mugging, and she didn't really have any enemies in this town, in fact, she didn't have any enemies at all. Well, maybe she could consider Dr. Eisenberg an enemy, but this relationship was one sided. She wanted him dead, he didn't care much about her. As for rape, remembering how often she had been mocked for her appearance, that wouldn't be much of a risk. On the other hand, Josef K had expressed desire to rape her once. But he then somehow forgot about it. If he wanted to rape her, he wouldn't ambush her in a dark alley, he would ask Dr. Evans for permission. Hopefully he wouldn't do so. Seeing as that she hadn't really much to fear, she entered the alleyway.

The alleyway was very narrow, she was walking in the middle, if she were to extend her arms, her elbows would touch the walls of the houses bordering it. Said houses were constructed from red bricks, with gray mortar visible in the seams. Clotheslines were spanned between these two houses, clearly tenements. As Maka walked over the compacted dirt that paved the way, she wondered who lived in these houses. They couldn't be rich, but how poor were they? How much room did each of them have to themselves? How many people occupied these buildings? The clothes didn't look much better than the ones she wore right now. In fact, many of them were worse, having been torn and repaired several times, whereas her clothes were still relatively new. But even Jonathan's clothes looked better than these. These people were obviously so poor that they couldn't replace clothes when they ripped, so they sewed them back together, like Maka's family used to. Louis K on the other hand, seemed to be wealthy enough to replace his slave's clothes whenever they were worn out, otherwise Jonathan would have worn something that had been patched once or twice by now. Or maybe he always wore the same clothes. Her owner also had no patched clothes, but this wasn't surprising, given that he had been called rich by Ms. Nakatsukasa.

The alleyway led into a small courtyard, created by the placement of the houses. But in this courtyard, Maka saw something that amazed her. On the far side was large wooden box. Blair, Maka recognized her by her hat, was climbing on this box. A clowder, that is a group of cats, was watching her expectantly, as if they were waiting for something. Maka hid behind a trashcan that was standing at the corner were she was. Then she wondered what she was doing. This was nothing more than a clowder, they would probably soon lick each other clean, or maybe there was some catnip growing here, and they were about to get high. Maka had never gotten high, but she wondered what it was like. But she couldn't afford to get addicted to anything, it would make her give up on her escape plans.

Blair started to meow. She emitted a series of mews and meows, while walking around on the box, always facing the clowder. She remembered Maka of the mayor of her village, who also walked around while giving speeches, particularly if he hadn't memorized them. But this was nonsense, this cat was not making a speech to the clowder, since cats can't talk. Blair stopped meowing, looking at the clowder, all the other cat's started to purr in unison. Something must have pleased them very much. Normally, there was something relaxing about the purring of a cat, but this was scary. She couldn't help but think that these cat's were communicating. What would they do if they caught her? Probably nothing, seeing as they were just cats, and were definitively not listening to a speech, because cat's can't talk. Blair started to meow again. A few meows later, it became a hissing and Blair started to raise her fur and arch her back, as if she was getting ready to fight. Maka wondered if Blair hat discovered Maka. If Blair complained to Dr. Evans, Maka would get a whipping. No, Blair couldn't complain to her owner, because she was a cat. Blair relaxed her posture, dropping onto her side and starting to purr. Maka wondered what she was doing. Maybe this was some sort of normal cat behavior, no reason to be afraid. Maka noticed she had been holding her breath. Blair rolled over and got back onto her feet, raising her tail into the air. All of the clowder started to hiss in unison, arching their backs and raising their fur. Were they angry at Blair? Apparently not, because they calmed down once Blair resumed meowing. Maka should probably continue on her way home, but if she went through the courtyard, the cats would see her. She would have to go back through the alleyway and then take the long way. Blair stopped meowing, all the clowder started to purr in unison, and Blair stepped down from the box. Which ideas had she communicated to the clowder? A black and gray striped cat climbed on the box. Then Blair, looking in Maka's direction, started to his. The clowder turned to face Maka, they all started hissing. They wanted to kill her. Then eat her. She would make a delicious meal for them. Maka turned around and ran back trough the alleyway, without looking back even once. Once she was out of the alley, she ran to a police officer, screaming for help. The officer turned around, and after looking in her direction, ordered her to present her collar. Maka, out of panic, looked back towards the alleyway, hiding behind the police officer, seeing that the cats had ceased their pursuit. This earned her a stinging slap across her face. She presented her collar. Maka wanted to explain to the officer about the cats, but he just send her on her way, probably thinking she was crazy. How should she explain this incident to her owner? Maybe she shouldn't?


	61. What happened to Lefty?

As she walked to her owner's house, she figured that he most likely wouldn't know when she came back. Changes were he was in his office at this very moment, working on Mr. Conway's case, or somebody else's case. Therefore, whenever she was doing an errand outside the house, she could take her time, as he wouldn't notice. However, she should hurry now. When she arrived, her owner just left his office. He saw her and took out his watch.

"What took you so long?", asked Dr. Evans. She had to think of something and quick.

"There was a clowder in the way, master", said Maka, getting a feeling that she just made a mistake.

"What's a clowder?", asked her owner.

"A group of cats, master", said Maka.

"And how did the clowder obstruct you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"They were sitting and looking at that cat Blair, which visits you regularly, master", said Maka.

"And how did that stop you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I watched what they were doing in fascination, master", said Maka.

"And what were they doing?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Normal cat things, meowing and cleaning each other, master", lied Maka, "I know this isn't a reason to postpone fulfilling your orders, master, I ask you to forgive me just this once".

"Well, I don't have time to whip you now, so I'll let this slide, just this once. If you do this again, you'll get the whipping I didn't give you today in addition to the whipping you will get then", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, relieved that pleading for mercy actually worked.

"Bring me my coat", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans put on his coat and left. As Maka resumed doing the chores, she wondered what Blair was up to. What she witnessed today was just another thing in a series of events that made her doubt Blair's true nature. Maybe she wasn't really a cat, but something else. What was she planning? What was her standing among the other cats? She was better dressed than the other cats, owning an accessory, therefore she was probably their leader. On the other hand, not all accessories indicated a higher status of the wearer, like Maka's collar, which indicated a low status. Therefore Blair was either a high ranking cat or a low ranking one. But if she was low ranking, then why were the other cat's listening to her? She definitively had a high rank. The alpha cat. Did cats even have alpha animals, seeing as they don't usually form groups. Maybe Blair secretly ruled the world. No, West Wyoming's president didn't rule the world, therefore there was no way a mere cat, even if said cat was very interesting, ruled the world. Maybe Blair didn't rule the world yet, but aspired to. How would Blair even take over the world? How would Maka go about taking over the world? Well, the first thing would be to get out of captivity, then she would have to gain followers and eventually kill everyone who disagreed with her. Then, she would rule with an iron fist. But this was a foolish line of thinking, even if she could size power, she would never be able to govern better than the president of West Wyoming. But if she took control of a considerable piece of land, she could hand it over to West Wyoming to annex it, and return as a celebrated hero. But actually trying this would be impossibly reckless and dangerous, she wanted freedom, not power. Her old live back.

But assuming Blair was aspiring to seize power, how would she do it. The biggest obstacle in Blair's path would be the fact that she's a cat. Also, even if she succeeded in taking over a large country, how would she tell her conquered citizens what she wanted them to do, seeing as cats can't talk. Maybe Blair was not trying to enslave humanity, but to become a sovereign over her own species, a queen of cats. While this was more plausible than the previous theory, it did rise the question of why the clowder attacked Maka. If they didn't want trouble, then why did they start trouble. Maybe they had just gathered for fun, and Maka had disturbed them. Maybe they weren't planning anything, and none of them knew they would gather today, but they just did. This last thesis was probably right, seeing as these were cats, who, as far as Maka knew, where not intelligent animals. They just catch vermin, and that was all. But Maka couldn't help but think that they were up to something. It was giving her a headache. She should stop thinking about cats.

So Maka began to think about Josef K's slave, Jonathan, only to realize that he wasn't really interesting at all. So she then thought about Lefty. Where was Lefty at this moment? Probably standing on the most backwards stage of the slave market, waiting for the market to close for the day, so she could return to the cell and continue waiting for death. Maybe they actually did turn her into glue. How would that even work? They as far as she knew, it was possible to turn the bones of animals into glue, so it was probably possible with human bones as well. They would kill her and cook her until the meat fell from her bones, hopefully in this order. Then they would grind up the bones and turn them into glue. But what would they do with the rest. They could use the fat to produce soap. Or they could eat it. But while they certainly weren't nice people, they didn't seem to be cannibalistic. Maybe there were cannibals in this town, who just waited for something like that to happen, to buy some meat. But was selling human flesh even legal? A traveler who came through her village once, and enjoyed her families hospitality, had told her that he knew of someone who got executed in the kingdom of Odgen for cannibalism. She didn't know how legal it was here, but most people are not cannibals. Her owner would probably know this. But how should she ask him? Probably not at all.


	62. Uniform

Maka wondered whether she should prepare lunch for her owner, since he had headed out. She eventually decided to prepare lunch, because he hadn't told her otherwise. As she was preparing lunch, she went about devising a strategy about how she should get Ms. Nakatsukasa hand over her old collar to Maka for her to experiment on it. She checked how much bread was left, she would see Ms. Nakatsukasa quite soon. Then she noticed Blair in the window. Maka didn't know what she should do, give her some food? Blair was staring at her. Maka opened to window to let Blair in, because Blair was always welcome. But Blair didn't enter, she just stared at her. Maka returned to preparing the meal, slightly unnerved.

What did Blair want from her? Had she come to silence the only human witness to the cat convention? No, it wasn't a convention, it was a random meeting of cat. Just a clowder that had randomly formed. Maka turned her attention back to the omelet she was preparing for her owner. She hoped he would like it. Blair continued to stare. Then she heard her owner open the door. Blair had left in the meantime. Maka wondered why Blair had chosen this moment to leave, even thought she normally ran towards Dr. Evans whenever she saw him. One could be forgiven for thinking that Blair had a crush on him. But this was impossible, Blair was a cat, cats and humans don't mate. On the other hand, there was a law against bestiality in West Wyoming, which meant somebody must have tried it at some point.

As she put the omelet on the table, she remembered that there was something she wanted to tell him, but she couldn't remember what. This was probably Blair's fault, this cat never did her any good. First, she got her to run into walls, then she assaulted her ears, followed by attempted murder and now she had distracted her. This cat had it in for her. She wanted to ask her owner about the legality of cannibalism. No, even in the best case scenario, this would only make him suspicious of her. Maybe she should complain about the cat. No, her owner would side with the cat. She would just have to avoid Blair whenever possible.

Her owner had finished eating, she put his plate into the kitchen before eating for herself. What did she wanted to say to him. It must have been something that would not get her into trouble, which narrowed it down drastically. She eventually figured that whatever she wanted to say wasn't very important, otherwise she would have remembered it, if it was important, it would come to her eventually. In the evening she prepared dinner for her owner. After he had eaten, she ate for her self and cleaned the dishes, then her owner allowed her to go to sleep.

When she prepared breakfast the next morning, she remembered what she had wanted to tell him. Bread was about to go out, so he should sent her to buy some more. She would also have suggested to wait until tomorrow, that is, today, morning, so that the bread would be completely fresh. This would have brought her many advantages, time to talk to Ms. Nakatsukasa, her owner wouldn't know how long she was gone, maybe she would even be able to talk to Meme. But now she would have to wait for her owner to wake up before she could go to the bakery, since she needed money to buy bread, and she didn't have any. But going there at seven o'clock would be futile, as Ms. Nakatsukasa would have to many customers to talk to her. She would have to go some time when the business would have died down. So she prepared breakfast for her owner, wondering when she should tell him about the lack of bread.

"Water the lawn", ordered her owner while he ate his breakfast.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"There is a watering can and a nozzle that spreads the water out in the basement", said her owner.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, "Should I do the dishes first?".

"Water the lawn first", said her owner.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the basement and began looking for the watering can, which she found after some searching. It was made from some kind of green material, lighter than an iron watering can, The nozzle, which was made from a similar black material, was conveniently still attached. She went upstairs and filled the can in the kitchen, something she would probably have to do several times before she was finished. After she had refilled the can for the first time, she saw that Jonathan was doing the same thing.

"Good morning", said Maka.

"Mornig", said Jonathan.

"Say, what do you do while your master is out?", asked Maka.

"I just make sure that he'll be satisfied when he comes back", said Jonathan.

"When will this be?", asked Maka

"He came back yesterday", said Jonathan. Just as he said this, Louis K came walked into his garden. He was wearing a black cloak, witch an red stripe over the chest. There was an emblem of a skull on the right shoulder, the number three on the left one. He wore some kind of mask on his head, but it was turned back, so it didn't obstruct his face. The mask itself would obscure the entire face, two holes for the eyes, covered with a clear material, a big nozzle over the mouth. He seemed to be rather melancholic, restlessly walking around his garden. Maka had to go and refill her can. When she came back, Louis K was at the far side of his garden, Jonathan, on the other hand, was on the side closest to her, watering the lawn.

"What's up with this outfit?", asked Maka, pointing at Louis K.

"He always wears it on this day, every year", said Jonathan.

"But why?", asked Maka.

"I don't know, you'd have to ask him", said Jonathan., "but it looks like some kind of uniform, it also feels like it's armored".

"So it's purpose is to protect the wearer from something", said Maka, "but now he wears it solely to reminisce about something".

"Makes one wonder what happened to him", said Jonathan.


	63. Fight with Meme

"He's probably just weird", said Maka quitly, so that Louis K could not hear her.

"Careful, his hearing is extraordinary", warned Jonathan.

"Anyway, what do you think about Ms. Nakatsukasa?", asked Maka, changing the subject.

"What about her?", asked Jonathan, "She owns a bakery".

"I know that, but can you tell me something else about her?", asked Maka.

"She's very nice, sometimes she gives me a bun for free", said Jonathan.

"She never gave me a free bun", said Maka.

"Well, maybe she will someday", said Jonathan, "She seems to be always friendly".

"Meme would disagree", said Maka.

"Who's that?", asked Jonathan.

"Ms. Nakatsukasa's slave", said Maka.

"That ditz?", asked Jonathan.

"Yes, that ditz", said Maka, "there was a guard at the slave market who nicknamed her airhead".

"Nice nickname, I'll remember that", said Jonathan, "anyway, how does Ms. Nakatsukasa treat Airhead?".

"She stuffed a rag into her mouth and whipped her", said Maka.

"Wonder what she did", said Jonathan.

"Well, Ms. Nakatsukasa decided to punish Meme after I had handed her a complaint letter, written by my master", said Maka.

"What was he angry about?", asked Jonathan.

"He entered the bakery, I was following behind, Meme was at the register", said Maka.

"And then?", asked Jonathan.

"She greeted me, then my master got angry", said Maka.

"Whoa, what a stupid mistake", said Jonathan.

"What do you mean?", asked Maka.

"What Airhead did was a grave insult", said Jonathan, "She basically forced Ms. Nakatsukasa to punish her".

"How's that?", asked Maka.

"Because if Ms. Nakatsukasa hadn't done that, it would have led to a duel between her and your master", explained Jonathan.

"Whoa", said Maka.

"Yeah, they would have met in the morning, and shot each other", said Jonathan.

"I'll keep that in mind", said Maka, before she went to refill her watering can. So if she could somehow provoke a duel between her master and somebody who could shot better, she could eliminate him without getting her hands dirty. But how good could her master shoot? Maybe she should ask Jonathan.

"Say, do you happen to know how good my master can handle a gun?", asked Maka.

"He kinda relies on duels to eliminate key witnesses, so I guess he can shoot better than most", said Jonathan, "Why do you ask?".

"I'm just asking", said Maka.

"I don't think his death would be good for you, no matter what you're planning", said Jonathan.

"Do you know any people who are good with guns?", asked Maka.

"Dr. Blackstar, Baldie, Dr. Albarn, Dr. Stein, several of my master's business allies", said Jonathan. This information was kinda valuable.

"What are you saying about my business partners?", asked Louis K.

"That they are fine marksmen", said Jonathan.

"Everybody in my business is that", said Louis K, "why are you two talking about marksmanship?".

"Maka asked me about who is a good marksman and who isn't", said Jonathan. Louis K laughed. Maka didn't like the direction the conversation was taking, especially Louis K joining the conversation was problematic.

"Anyway, I'm going for a walk, I want some you to prepare coffee until I'm back", ordered Louis K.

"Yes, master", said Jonathan as Louis K walked away. Jonathan entered his owner's house to prepare the coffee and Maka finished watering the lawn, before she walked inside her owner's house.

"I couldn't help but notice you talking to Jonathan", said Dr. Evans, who was sitting on a couch in his living room.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"No, I don't mind that, but tell me, you did notice Louis' clothes, did you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", answered Maka.

"Did Jonathan tell you anything about it?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Only that he wears it every year on this day, master", said Maka.

"I have a book about different European uniforms in my library", said Dr. Evans, "fetch it for me".

"I'm sorry, master, but I can't read", said Maka.

"Right", said Dr. Evans.

"Master, I also noticed earlier that there isn't much bread left, should I go and buy some?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans, handing her a thousand dollar bill.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she went to walk to the bakery. At the bakery, Meme was watching the register.

"Good day,...", said Maka, looking around to make sure Meme was the only one there, "Meme".

"Hello, Maka", greeted Meme.

"A rye bread, please", ordered Maka. Meme looked at the different breads on the shelf, before she eventually found the rye bread.

"That would be...", said Meme before she looked at the price tag, "seven five zero dollars".

"Here you go", said Maka, handing her the thousand dollar bill.

"Thank you", said Meme and put the money in the register.

"Do you want something else?", asked Meme after a minute of silence.

"The change", said Maka.

"Don't we all want change?", asked Meme, "a change in this society".

"No, I gave you a thousand dollars, but the bread only costs seven hundred fifty dollars", said Maka, "I want two hundred fifty dollars back".

"I have no recollection of you giving me any money", said Meme. Maka wanted to strangle Meme.

"Could I talk to your mistress?", asked Maka.

"No", said Meme.

"Why not?", asked Maka.

"The first time you talked to her, I got gagged and whipped", said Meme, "I certainly won't let you talk to her again".

"You got punished because you insulted my master, who made me give a letter of complaint about you to your mistress", said Maka, "Not because I talked to her, in fact, this behavior is going to get you in even more trouble".

"I don't believe you", said Meme.

"Hurry up", said Louis K, who had apparently stopped at the bakery to buy himself a snack.

"See, you're holding up the line", said Meme, "please leave".

"Your mistress will hear about this", threatened Maka as she turned to leave, worrying more about how her owner would react.

"Wait, you didn't pay for the bread!", shouted Meme.

"Yes, I did", said Maka.

"No you didn't", said Meme before she jumped over the counter and grabbed Maka's bag.

"Yes, I did", said Maka, pulling the bag to herself.

"No, you didn't!", yelled Meme, ripping the bag from Maka's hands, exhibiting more strength than she seemed to have at first sight. Maka left the bakery, defeated.


	64. A horn

"I want a croissant", said Louis K.

"Yes, sir", said Meme.

"The brown curved things", said Louis K after a short pause before Maka got out of earshot. She walked slowly, because she didn't look forward to explaining the situation to her owner. How would he react? He would whip her. Maybe he would see that the situation was not really her fault. But would he believe her? Louis K had witnessed all the events, he could confirm her story. But Louis K didn't really like her, he may even lie to make it look like Maka was at fault. Her fate rested in the hands of a man who didn't like her, but she had to try it at least. It was the only way she could avoid a whipping. But where would he go now? Maka stopped and turned to watch the bakery. A short while later Louis K left the bakery and walked in her direction. Maka turned back around and walked slowly, so that Louis K would eventually catch up with her, provided that he was heading home.

"Excuse me, sir", said Maka as Louis K walked past her, the last time she talked to him, he had her whipped, hopefully, he would react differently this time.

"What is it?", he asked.

"Did you witness the events in the bakery, sir?", asked Maka.

"Yes, I did", said Louis K.

"Guten tag Louis", said Dr. Eisenberg, wearing a similar uniform like Louis K. The only difference was that the number on his shoulder was a two. The two proceeded to shake hands and walked across the street, apparently talking about their past. Maka wondered what the numbers represented. Perhaps rank. Then who has higher ranking? Louis K or Dr. Eisenberg? Also, if Louis was busy chatting to Dr. Eisenberg, he couldn't tell her owner that it wasn't really her fault. Maybe her owner would be willing to wait for Louis K before giving her a whipping. Louis K was the only one who could help her now.

Eventually she arrived at her owner's house. She entered, and heard her owner chatting with Dr. Blackstar in the living room. Apparently they were arguing about uniforms. Maybe they were trying to identify Louis K's uniform. Why was Dr. Blackstar even here? He must have come while she was buying bread, or trying to. She entered the living room. Dr. Evans and Dr. Blackstar sat on couch, bend over a book. They didn't notice her at first.

"Maka is back", said Dr. Evans, looking up to her, "Make us some tea".

"Master", sputtered Maka, "There was a problem with buying bread".

"How did you screw that up?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka told him what had happened in the bakery.

"And you honestly expect me to believe that?", asked Dr. Evans.

"If you ask me, she's lying", said Dr. Blackstar.

"I'm telling the truth, master", said Maka, "Louis K. saw it, too".

"I'll ask him, then", said Dr. Evans, "If it turns out you were lying, you will be severely punished".

"Yes, master", said Maka, almost inaudible. She was shaking internally.

"Prepare tea now", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka as she went into the kitchen. Dr. Evans left the house. Maka could see the garden throught the window. Jonathan was apparently busy weeding Louis K's lawn. Since Louis K. was not home, Dr. Evans would ask him about his whereabouts. Maka wondered when Louis K would be back. He and Dr. Eisenberg looked like two childhood friends who met each other after many years, at a funeral. They probably had lots to discuss. Even though she was completely innocent, she would probably be "severely punished", as her owner put it. It sounded painful. It also implies that the whippings she had received until now weren't severe ones. That thought scared her. She removed the tea bags from the cups. And brought them to Dr. Blackstar, Dr. Evans was still away.

"What kind of tea did you prepare?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"The one with the yellow tag, sir", said Maka.

"What does it taste like?", asked Dr. Blackstar, waiting for his tea to cool off.

"I never tried it", said Maka.

"You don't drink your owners tea behind his back?" asked Dr. Blackstar.

"No, I would never do that, sir", said Maka.

"My slaves do", said Dr. Blackstar.

"And you tolerate it, sir?", asked Maka.

"I never catch them in the act, I only know it because my tea runs out too fast", said Dr. Blackstar.

"I'm sorry, sir", said Maka.

"It's not your fault", said Dr. Blackstar. Dr. Evans entered the room.

"Apparently Louis is out for walk", said Dr. Evans.

"You said he was at the bakery when the whole thing happened", said Dr. Blackstar, "Did you see him leave".

"Yes, he was heading home, until he met Dr. Eisenberg", said Maka, she didn't know if she should say "sir" or "master", as she was responding to Dr Blackstar, but her owner was also present, "Dr. Blackstar, sir".

"Maybe they went to Dr. Eisenberg's estate", theorized Dr. Evans, "I'll go and call". Dr. Evans went into the small corridor between the kitchen and the anteroom, and turned his attention to a strange device Maka had assumed to be decor. It was a cuboid, but on one side the edge was lowered, creating a slope. On this slope was a disk with numbers on it. On top of the disk was a horn with two cones at it's end. It was connected to the cuboid with a curled rope. Dr. Evans picked up the horn and began to spin the disk a short distance, then he let it snap back. He repeated that process several times. Then he waited, holding the horn to his head.

"Dr. Evans", said Dr. Evans into the horn.

"Could you tell Dr. Eisenberg, if he arrives accompanied by Louis K, to call me back?", asked Dr. Evans, into the horn. Who was he talking to? The device, or maybe someone else. Maybe Vanessa, or another one of Dr. Eisenberg's slaves.

"Thank you, have a good day", said Dr. Evans, before he put the horn back down. He then went back into the living room and he and Dr. Blackstar continued to talk about uniforms. Maka went back to doing her work. Hopefully Louis K would tell the truth.


	65. Louis K calls

A while later, it was time to prepare lunch. Maka wondered whether she should prepare Lunch only for her owner or if she should prepare lunch for for Dr. Blackstar, too. Maybe she should ask, but how would her owner react to this. She decided to try it.

"Master, should I prepare lunch for Dr. Blackstar, too?", asked Maka.

"Do you want to stay over for lunch?", Dr. Evans asked Dr. Blackstar.

"Why not", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Prepare lunch for two", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she started to prepare lunch. After she had prepared the meal, both Dr. Blackstar and Dr. Evans took their seats. During the meal they continued to talk about uniforms, unable to figure what Louis K's uniform represented. Halfway through the meal, a ringing sound was heard. Maka tried to locate the source of the ringing sound. Apparently, it was the apparatus with the horn. Dr Evans excused himself from the meal and went to the horned apparatus.

"Dr. Evans", said Dr. Evans, "say, is Louis K present?".

"Good", said Dr. Evans, "Could I talk to him, please". Who was he talking to? Maybe Dr. Eisenberg.

"Say, were you in the bakery today in the morning?", asked Dr. Evans, he was probably talking to Louis K now, hopefully he would tell the truth.

"So you saw what happened?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Thanks, this clears things up", said Dr. Evans, "say, what's that uniform you're wearing?".

"Come on, you can tell me, please", begged Dr. Evans. After a short silence, he put the horn back on the apparatus.

"Maka, go to your quarters and disrobe completely", ordered Dr. Evans. She would get punished. Louis K had not confirmed her story. She would be punished, severely whipped. She was on the verge of tears.

"Please, master, have mercy", begged Maka, getting on her knees.

"I'm going to whip you until the blood flows freely from your back", threatened Dr. Evans, "Then I'll turn you around and do the same thing on your front".

"Please, master, show some mercy", cried Maka, her tears freely flowing from her eyes. There was nothing she could do. Resisting would only get her killed, and she feared death more than pain.

"After I've done that, I'll tear your fingernails out, one by one", said Dr. Evans, "Then your toenails".

"Please, have mercy, master", cried Maka, almost inaudible.

"I'll not grant mercy, now go", said Dr. Evans, shoving her over, so that she fell on her side. Maka slowly crawled towards her quarter, sloly getting up along the way. This would hurt. How long would it take for the wounds to heal? What if they got infected? She knew someone who once died of a small little cut, while she didn't know that much about medicine, she knew that the risk of infection would increase if the wound was larger. Perhaps she would even bleed to death, it was entirely possible to get whipped to death. But if her owner wanted to kill her, he would have her crucified, he probably wouldn't whip her to death. Should she just make a run for it? She would probably get caught and crucified, but it was a chance. What was more likely, that she survived this whipping, or that she escaped succesfully? Probably the first. Her owner probably didn't want to kill her, and if he did, he would have to buy himself a new slave, or clean his house himself. He would probably have an interest in her survival, maybe he would even pay for medical treatment. Maka arrived in her quarter and disrobed. She sat down on the bed and began to wait. Would she survive this? It would probably be survivable. But "until the blood flows freely" sounded like it would be very dangerous to her.

Then her owner entered, holding one hand behind his back. Dr. Blackstar was following behind, he probably wanted to watch. And what was not to like about such a bloody spectacle, especially for him, he who gave the order to have young women burned alive. Maybe Eruka was really a witch, but how many witches even existed? There was a woman, called Medusa, who lived close to Maka's village. Perhaps she still lived there, but one would have to describe her location in relation to something other than her village. The folks in the village used to say that she was a witch. Her father had told her that Medusa was just a poor outcast, and that there were no such things as witches, but maybe her father was wrong, and the Medusa really was a witch. Her owner and Dr. Blackstar burst into laughter. Maka could see now that her owner didn't carry a whip, his hands were empty. Why were they laugthing?

"Just kidding, Louis' story matched up perfectly with yours", said Dr. Evans, having trouble telling her this while he was laugthing.

"Does that mean that you won't whip me, master?", asked Maka, her heart filling with hope.

"Yes, get dressed and get back to work", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka silently cursed her owner's perverted sense of humor.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "Your comedic abilities are sure to cause envy, master". Maka put her dress back on and fetched the dishes from the table. She was extremely relieved. She wouldn't get punished for the events that weren't her fault at all. But what would happen now? Her owner would in some way complain to Ms. Nakatsukasa. What would happen to Meme then. Probably the stuff Dr. Evans had just threatened he would do to Maka. On the other hand, Ms. Nakatsukasa probably couldn't afford to replace Meme, so Meme probably wouldn't get whipped to death. While it was questionable whether such a whipping would be lethal or just very painful, she wondered what would happen to Meme. Maybe Ms. Nakatsukasa would spread the punishment out a bit, so that Meme wouldn't get seriously hurt. But one thing that wondered Maka was why Meme acted that way. Then she remebered how incredibly forgetful Meme was. In school, she had frequently forgotten to do her homework, or to study for tests, as a result Meme was at the bottom of her class.


	66. Parasol

How would her owner deal with the situation now? He would probably complain to Ms. Nakatsukasa, but how. He would either write a letter and order Maka to deliver it or go himself. Maybe he would even take her along, so that Ms. Nakatsukasa could hear an eyewitnesses account. Would Ms. Nakatsukasa believe Dr. Evans? What would happen if she disbelieved him. They would probably start an argument, maybe it would even go to court.

In the evening her owner got ready to go out. He first put on his coat, but then he looked outside and found that it was too hot to comfortably wear a coat. He put his coat back and fetched an umbrella.

"I'm going out, walk behind me and hold this parasol over me, so that the sun doesn't shine on me", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka took the parasol, but she couldn't see how it was different from an umbrella.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She followed her owner outside and opened the parasol. It was then that she saw what the difference between a parasol and an umbrella was. A parasol wouldn't stop the rain, it would soak it in and get wet. Hopefully it wouldn't rain. On the way, Maka was holding the parasol slightly angled, so that the sun would not shine on her owner.

"Good evening, Dr. Evans", greeted a police officer.

"Good evening, officer Smith", responded Dr. Evans.

"Why do you use an umbrella, when we have such wonderful weather?", asked the police officer.

"Technically, that's a parasol", said Dr. Evans.

"What's the difference?", asked the police officer.

"I would stay and explain it, but I really have to get going", said Dr. Evans, "Goodbye".

"Goodbye", said the police officer. After a short walk, they arrived at the bakery. It was already closed, but Dr. Evans knocked anyway. Ms. Nakatsukasa opened after a short while.

"Good evening, why do you visit me at such an hour?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I want to complain", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry to hear that", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "what seems to be the problem".

"Well, it happened when my slave was buying bread", said Dr. Evans, "I brought her along so that she could tell exactly what happened". Dr. Evans stepped into the bakery, and Maka collapsed the parasol. Then she told Ms. Nakatsukasa exactly what had happened.

"I was wondering why I sold one bread more than I baked", said Ms. Nakatsukasa once Maka had finished telling her what had happened, "We also have two hundred and fifty dollars too much in the register".

"Louis K can tell you the same story, too", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm terribly sorry", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "here's the thousand dollars back".

"Thank you", said Dr. Evans.

"Be assured that Meme will be punished", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Can I ask how?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I don't know yet", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "She committed so many offenses in this such a short amount of time that it calls for severe action".

"Are you going to sell her to a fuel farm?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I don't think they would pay enough to replace her", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"True, they take advantage of the fact that they are basically are a disposal for bad investments", said Dr. Evans.

"Say, why did you have your slave hold a parasol over your head?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"So the sun won't burn me", said Dr. Evans

"You're a vampire?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa, "How often do you drink from Maka?".

"I'm not a vampire", said Dr. Evans.

"Then what are you?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I'm an albino", said Dr. Evans, "isn't it obvious?".

"I thought you were a vampire", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Vampires don't exist", said Dr. Evans.

"My brother told me they did", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Well, they don't, and even if they did, being one would be illegal", said Dr. Evans.

"Like being a witch is illegal?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"I always wondered why we are prosecuting witches", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Because they are evil", said Dr Evans.

"Who determined that?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Somebody who knows more about ethics than we do", said Dr. Evans.

"Like Dr. Eisenberg?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, Dr. Eisenberg definitively studied the right subject for that job", said Dr. Evans.

"What is his job, anyway?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Here's his business card", said Dr. Evans, handing her small worn card.

"Forced personnel recruitment specialist", read Ms. Nakatsukasa, "sounds fancy and well paid".

"As far as I know, it's exciting work, too", said Dr. Evans.

"Too bad you need to study ethics to work in that field", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "I bet it pays better than baking".

"It's much riskier", said Dr. Evans, "There's a reason he never goes anywhere without his bodyguard".

"I thought he was just paranoid", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"You tend to make a lot of enemies if you're a slaver", said Dr. Evans.

"Nice word he came up with", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"That would be called an euphemism", said Dr. Evans, "a nice word for something bad".

"I would love to continue talking to you, but I need to wrap some things up for the evening", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "you should better leave".

"Goodbye", said Dr. Evans.

"Goodbye", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Dr. Evans left the bakery, and Maka opened the parasol to protect him from the sun's harmful rays. On the way, they met Blair, and Dr. Evans picked her up. Maka wondered if Blair would appreciate being carried away by Dr. Evans. She probably had her own plans. Dr. Evans petted Blair a bit, and after a while, Blair jumped away from his arm, onto a small wall, where the black and gray cat from the clowder was sitting. Perhaps it had waited for Blair there. What were these cats planning. But it was absurd that the cats were planning anything, since they were only cats. They were probably going to clean each other. Maka should stop thinking that the cats were part of a conspiracy. Maybe they were being paid by foreign governments to spy on the population. But in what would the cats get paid? Maybe fish. After Maka and her owner arrived at his house, she prepared dinner for him, and let her go to sleep after she had finished the dishes. She would have to buy bread in the morning.


	67. Change of piorities

The next morning she went to buy bread. When she arrived at the bakery, she saw Meme sweeping the floor, who had been gagged.

"See", said Maka, "I told you you weren't doing yourself a favor". Meme looked at her, her expression being distorted by the rag over her mouth, which was being held wide open by another rag. What did she want to say. That Maka was right? Maybe she wanted to hurl some profanities at Maka. Maka patted her on the back. Meme winced in pain. So she had been whipped. Maka went up to Ms. Nakatsukasa, who was standing at the register and bought a bread.

"I see you have punished Meme", said Maka.

"Well, I can't tolerate her mistreating customers like that", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"What do you think of slavery?", asked Maka.

"It's alright", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Did you think that even when you were a slave yourself?", asked Maka.

"I always dreamed of one day getting free and owning slaves myself", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "My dream was to live the same way as my master".

"How did he treat you?", asked Maka.

"We got enough food", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "but he had a dislike for people younger than him".

"He was a hundred and twenty when he died?", asked Maka.

"Yes, it was a problem for just about everybody, not just us slaves", said Ms Nakatsukasa, "luckily he was very weak, so he couldn't beat anybody to death".

"He tried to beat his slaves to death on occasion?", asked Maka.

"My mother told me it was something that started around the time he turned hundred", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "so he never beat anybody to death with his bare hands".

"But he later had the unlucky slave executed?", asked Maka.

"By the time he had regained his senses enough to do that, he had already calmed down", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "such beatings were rarely followed by additional punishments. It was much worse when he didn't beat you up first".

"Old madman?", said Maka.

"That description fits fairly well", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"May I ask you a personal question?", asked Maka.

"Sure", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Did he ever rape you?", asked Maka.

"I doubt he could have had sex with anyone, even if he wanted to", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "his great grandson, on the other hand". Ms Nakatsukasa looked down, Maka found it to be a good time to change the subject.

"How exactly did you punish Meme, my master probably wants to know?", asked Maka.

"A few whippings and I plugged that stupid mouth of hers", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"For a former slave, you're very cruel to your own slaves", said Maka.

"I'm not that cruel, your master would have sold her to a fuel farm by now", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I'm sorry, madam" said Maka.

"Shouldn't you slowly get going?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka looked at the clock.

"Well, my master wants breakfast at seven o'clock, so I have plenty of time", said Maka.

"There's a prejudice among slaves working on farms or mines", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "they think that slaves working in their master's household are lazy".

"Where did they get that idea?" asked Maka.

"I don't know", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "maybe it's because they work harder".

"Sounds reasonable", said Maka.

"Say, where are you from, anyway?", asked Ms Nakatsukasa.

"West Wyoming", said Maka.

"I heard that place is lovely this time of the year", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, how I wish I was there", said Maka.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka understood that she had basically just told Ms. Nakatsukasa that she wanted to escape. But it was in an indirect manner, she had just expressed homesickness, she hadn't said that she was actively working on an escape. Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed like she wouldn't voluntarily help Maka by handing over her old collar, and asking about it now would be too risky.

"Anyway, I should get going now", said Maka.

"Goodbye", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. As Maka left the bakery, another customer entered. How would Maka acquire Ms. Nakatsukasa's old collar now? She wouldn't help her voluntarily, and Meme somehow blamed Maka for her punishment. Well, Maka could have prevented it if she had kept silent about the incident in the bakery, but what would she have told her owner then, that she lost his money? She would have been severely whipped. So she could have prevented Meme's punishment, at the cost of getting punished herself, but Meme would not even have realized Maka's sacrifice. Maybe it would be easy to win Meme over again. There was also another person to turn to for a collar to experiment on, Louis K. But he was even less likely to be willing to help her. Or maybe she could turn to Jonathan's predecessor. Then she remembered that that guy was dead, so contacting him would be a tad problematic. Maybe he had been buried somewhere nearby. No that was impossible, he would not have been buried in the same town where he died, in a village with a ridiculously bloated administration. Therefore, robbing his grave was only possible when she was already on the run, and then she wouldn't have time for that. Maybe Jonathan knew how to break these collars. But if Jonathan knew that, wouldn't he have escaped long ago? Maybe he had nowhere to run. Maybe Maka should just make a run for it without removing the collar first. After all, she would not necessarily get caught. But what if she got caught. Then she would be crucified. It was a high stake operation, but definitively worth the risk. She wanted to be free again. She would focus on different aspects of her escape plan for the time being, like planning the route. For that, she would have to get her hands on a suitable map, since she didn't know this country very well. In fact, she didn't even know her homeland well enough to be confident wandering around it without means of navigation.


	68. What to steal

When she arrived at her owner's house, she quickly prepared breakfast. She had chatted with Ms. Nakatsukasa for a bit too long, but if she hurried up, her owner would never know. Eventually she finished just as Dr. Evans walked downstairs. He sat down and began eating his breakfast.

"Master, I have bought bread like you wanted", said Maka, "Here's the change".

"Good, put it on the table", said Dr. Evans. Maka put the change on the table.

"Ms. Nakatsukasa has also punished Meme", said Maka.

"I figured that much", said Dr. Evans.

"Do you want to know the details, master?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans looked at her for some time, before he resumed eating his meal. After he was done, Maka cleaned the dishes and ate for herself. She then went to clean the library again. Looking at the maps again, something occurred to her. When she ran away, the bounty hunters would probably assume that she was headed for her homeland. Therefore the best thing to shake them off would be to go in the opposite direction, that way the would go in the wrong direction. Of course, she would then have to walk a long way back, but this strategy would maybe increase her changes. But through which countries should she run? Maybe she should just hide out for a while after she had run away, so that the search dies down, because people would just assume she died of something other than a bounty hunter's bullets, like a at the paw of a wild animal.

But if she wanted to avoid actually being eaten by a wild animal, she would have to acquire a gun. Her owner had one, but stealing it would be near impossible. But Louis K might sell her one. She would obviously have to steal some valuables to be able to pay him, but that would not be that much of a problem. But would Louis K be willing to sell her weapons for valuables she had stolen from her owner? He would probably break a lot of laws in doing so. Handling stolen goods was probably illegal in all jurisdictions and helping fugitives was probably against the law as well. If one added the fact that her owner would recognize the stolen valuable as soon as he saw it, she could probably rule out asking for Louis K's help, who, as she had the impression, didn't like her that much anyways.

But stealing valuables from her owner's house would be a good idea. But what would she take. This was when it occurred to her that her owner had nothing too valuable lying around his house. There were the exhibits in his museum, which were probably worth a lot of money, and these were all the easy to carry valuables she knew of. These were locked in display cases. While she didn't know how much abuse these display cases could withstand, breaking them would definitively be very noise, so she would have to do it while her owner was out. Then she remembered about this heavy metal cube her owner had bought at an auction. It was called art, after all. Maka began to wonder how much this metal cube was worth. Probably not enough, and it was so heavy that she would only sabotage her own escape if she took it along. She would have to find something else. Maybe his office contained valuables, but she wasn't allowed in his office. She also didn't saw many valuables on the desk the few times that she was allowed in. The safe in his office probably contained valuables, but she didn't know how to crack such a safe. It would be night impossible to do so for her. Why could her owner not show his wealth in a more extravagant way? Maybe she could break into his neighbors' houses. Maybe they had more valuables lying around. Then she thought about her owner's pocket watch. It would be easy to access while her owner was sleeping, and it was probably valuable.

But even if she had stolen something valuable, whom would she sell it to? Even if she got her slave collar off, she didn't look like someone who would be expected to have a lot of money on hand, so she probably couldn't approach a respectable salesman with her stolen goods, but there were plenty of not so honorable salesmen, who wouldn't ask any questions about the watch's origin. But how could she be sure that these salesmen wouldn't simply kill her and take the watch without paying? Or they may even recognize her as a fugitive, take the watch for themselves and return her to her owner, who would then crucify her, which was something she would definitively want to avoid. In fact, if she was about to be crucified, she should find a way to off herself first. The thing that terrified her most was that crucifixion wasn't such a distant eventuality, a single accident in her owner's private museum could be her demise. On the other hand, these display cases were sturdy, so that was not very likely. Maybe breaking them was possible. Maybe the only way to open them would be with the corresponding key, which her owner probably kept on his person at all times. At least, that's were she would keep it. But how should she prevent the kind of salesmen who deal with stolen goods from slitting her throat and dumping her body in a river? Maybe she could hide the object somewhere, demand half the money down first, retrieve the object and then take the second part of the money. But what would stop them from putting a bullet between her eyes then? The only way to be reasonably safe when dealing with dangerous people would be to be even more dangerous than them, so dangerous that they wouldn't dare cross her. But she clearly wasn't that dangerous, even if she had a firearm, since she had never learned how to handle a firearm. She only knew which end to point away from herself.


	69. Patty at the pillory

Several days passed. On Monday morning her owner ate his breakfast.

"I'll be going to court today, so you will have to pack my lunch", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, at least he didn't order her to deliver it to him at the courthouse.

"On second though, deliver it to me at the courthouse", said Dr. Evans. Maka began to wonder whether her owner could read her mind. If he could, he would know she was planning to escape, and he would act against it. Therefore he did not read her mind, he just had this idea at the same time as she had.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "Where is the courthouse, master?".

"It borders the market, behind the scaffold used for public executions", explained Dr. Evans, "the case will be heard in room one-three-three".

"Where is room one-three-three, master?" asked Maka.

"It's on the first story", said Dr. Evans, "but depending on how quick or how slow the trail progresses, it might be in room U-one-two by at lunch time".

"So I deliver the food to whichever room you're in at the time, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans, "You will have to put the food in a can, so that it doesn't get cold". Having spoken these words he went to the junk room and pulled out a large metal can with a handle.

"You fill the food in here", explained Dr. Evans, unscrewing the lid of the can, "But wash the can first".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She didn't understand how this would keep the food from getting cold. She would have to deliver it quickly.

"Also bring me these things", said Dr. Evans, handing her a dusty bowl and some army cutlery, apparently part of a military mess kit, "But wash them first". The mess kit would be useful for her escape, she should definitively put it somewhere she can find it again easily.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans went and finished his meal before he went upstairs. A few minutes later Maka heard him walk back down. She heard him enter his office, where he presumably packed some files relevant to the case. Maka wondered which case it was. Maybe it was Mr. Conway's case. Maka didn't know how her owner would behave if he won a case, but he would definitively be in a good mood. But Dr. Blackstar wasn't in a good mood when he got Eruka burned at the stake. Maybe the trail had been a few days ago and the hype had already left him. Hopefully her owner would win the case, she would probably benefit from it as well. A little later her owner left the house. She worked over the morning, she didn't want him to come back from court to discover that she had been dawdling during the day. It would be especially bad if her owner lost the case, since he would probably be looking for someone to take his anger out on, and while she would probably be that one, she wouldn't want to make him any angrier than he would already be. When it was time to prepare lunch, she cooked spaghetti, and prepared a soup out of the red fruit she had learned were called tomatoes. When she filled it into the can, which she had cleaned thoroughly before, she realized that she should have cooked something different, cleaning the can would now be a really difficult. But since she couldn't undo it, she filled the tomato soup in, too. Now she had to hurry and get to the courthouse before the food cooled.

When she arrived at the market, she saw Patty in the pillory on the scaffold. Maka wondered what Patty had done to deserve such a punishment. What had happened to Patty after Dr. Eisenberg had whipped her? She had probably left Dr. Eisenberg's group of plundering mercenaries at the first opportunity, maybe she even deserted. Then she had apparently done something bad and had been sentenced to stand at the pillory as a punishment. What had she been sentenced for? She had a sing around her neck, it would probably be tell her what she did, but it had somehow been turned around, so that Maka couldn't see the writing.

"Excuse me, officer", said Maka as she approached the police officer standing guard, "Could you tell me what this woman did?".

"Certainly, she has been sentenced for minor vandalism, she will be standing there until Monday morning at six o'clock", said the police officer, "she has been standing here since six o'clock this morning".

"Thank you officer", said Maka, "By the way, the sing around her neck has somehow been turned around". She wondered why minor vandalism carried such a harsh penalty. Just as she was contemplating this, someone threw something at Patty, closer examination revealed it to be a rotten apple. Maka went around Patty, eying her clothes. She wore a simple brown dressed, a little fancier than Maka's. Maka looked at the clock on the courthouse and noticed that she would still have some time until her owner wanted his lunch, assuming he wanted it at the same time as he usually wanted it, so Maka decided to look for something to throw at Patty.

"Excuse me again, officer", said Maka, "I'm thinking of throwing something at this woman, like someone recently did, would I be allowed to do that".

"If your master isn't against it, you can throw stuff at her", said the officer, "just don't throw rocks or anything that might seriously hurt her, or you'll end up there". He pointed at the second pillory.

"So throwing trash at her is fine, officer?", asked Maka in disbelief.

"Yes, of course it is", said the officer, "are you dumb?"

"No, officer", said Maka, "Have a good day, officer".


	70. Throwing stuff

Then she went to look for something to throw at Patty. It had to be something disgusting. The first thing she though off was an apple, but then she remembered that she didn't have the money necessary to buy an apple. But there were some rotten and half eaten apples lying around. Maka quickly located one and picked up. It was a red apple, a big piece had been bitten of, in the bite she could see the remains of a worm, which explained why the apple had been thrown away. The other side of the apple had a squished patch, a very dark, almost dark brown. Turning it around she saw a fungus growing on it's base. This was the most disgusting apple she had ever seen. She went up to Patty and threw it.

"Missed me!", shouted Patty.

"Remember me?", asked Maka.

"Oh yeah, you're the one who wanted to get me in trouble", said Patty. Somebody else hit her with a rotten pear.

"Shouldn't you be doing your master's bidding", said Patty.

"I've got some time to have fun", said Maka.

"Just try, you won't hit me", said Patty. Somebody else threw some kind of animal organ at her, it looked like a gallbladder. Maka went to search for another projectile. She could do better than a rotten apple. There had to be something. She saw a pile of biological waste. She went up to it, she could hardly dig around in it, her owner would probably get angry if she delivered his food while wearing a scent best described as rotten flesh. She saw turned around and saw a fish salesman. Maybe she could find some fish intestines at his stand. She would ask.

"Excuse, me, sir, do you have some fish intestines, the things you would normally throw away?", asked Maka.

"What do you want these for?", asked the salesman, Maka simply pointed at Patty.

"I put them on the trash pile over there", said the salesman, pointing at the pile Maka had just looked at.

"Thank you sir", said Maka. Then she went to look at the pile again, also walking around it to see it from the other side. There she found the intestine of a fish. It was beige and long, the stomach was still connected the intestine, Maka picked it up and threw it at Patty. Sadly, she missed by a mile, and the intestine flew over the pillory.

"Aaah!", yelled a female voice, "were did that come from?".

"Throwing stuff isn't really...", said Patty, but she was interrupted by someone throwing a yellow curved fruit at her head, "...your strong suit. I wish that was true for everyone else here, too". Maka didn't really know if she should retort the taunt.

"Does your nose itch?", asked Maka, "how about your back?"

"No", said Patty, "Curse you!".

"Like ants, crawling over your body and burrowing under your skin?", suggested Maka.

"Shut up!", cried Patty.

"Make me!" said Maka. Another rotten apple hit Patty. Maka looked at the clock. She still had time to throw something nasty at Patty. If she hurried, she might even throw many things at Patty. But that wasn't what she wanted. Anybody could throw rotten apples or other fruit at Patty, but Maka wanted to hit her with something memorable. Something truly disgusting. And it would be best if she hit her right in the face, too. She would be an artist of throwing disgusting stuff at helpless people, which she found sounded somewhat wrong. But she couldn't come up with a better wording better right now.

Maka began to search for something to throw at Patty. She found plenty of rotten fruits, but these were not satisfactory at all, she needed something that would leave a tremendous impact. Something heavy. Maybe a heavy fruit. She would eventually find something. She saw a vendor selling pumpkins. Maka wondered where he had gotten them, as pumpkins would not be harvested until fall or so. Maybe these were imported from a country where pumpkins were harvested earlier. Maybe pumpkins were harvested now in New Nevada. A pumpkin would be optimal, but she couldn't afford one. Maybe she could throw a large animal intestine. But they didn't sell that much meat here, and not fresh meat, only smoked or salted meat, and unlike the fish salesmen, they didn't slaughter the cows right here on the market. Then she saw a slave walking a large dog. The dog was large and blond, maybe a golden retriever. Maka wondered why they were called that, even though they never retrieved gold. The golden retriever walked along the edge of the market, where it defecated. Maka went over and looked at the dog feces. It would be the ideal projectile to throw at Patty, but Maka didn't want to touch the dog feces with her own hand. She went back to the trash pile and pulled out a piece of an old newspaper. She went up to the dog feces and picked it up with the old newspaper, so that she didn't actually touch the dog excrement.

Now it would only be an issue of aiming properly, to achieve something that she had failed to do two times up to now. She wasn't normally that bad at throwing things. Then she noticed Blair sitting on the roof of a stand. Was that black cat giving her bad luck? Either way, Maka would chase Blair away. She grabbed Blair, who she could only barely reach. Blair immediately started to scratch at Maka, but Maka held Blair up high, ignoring the pain as Blair turned her hand into a bloody mess. Maka would throw Blair at Patty. Unfortunately, Blair escaped, so Maka picked up a rotten apple instead. She threw the apple at Patty, missing by a few centimeters.

"If it wasn't for gravity, you couldn't even hit the..." said Patty, right before Maka threw the dog excrement at her. And hitting. Right in the mouth.

"Looks like you got shitfaced", said Maka.


	71. The interrogator

Maka went around Patty and into the courthouse, she could hear Patty losing her lunch, or was it her breakfast, but Maka didn't really care. She was satisfied that she had gotten revenge on Patty. She then smelled her hands, they smelled badly, but she could only smell it when she put them really close to her nose. She should definitely wash them. So she went back outside, to the fountain, Patty yelled curse words at her, but was once again interrupted by a projectile hitting her head. Maka quickly washed her hands, wiping them off on her dress and went back into the courthouse. In the foyer was a large statue. It showed a woman in a simple yet unusual dress. The dress consisted of several pieces of fabric, held in place by pins to form a decent outfit. She held a sword in her right hand and a balance weight in her left. She was blindfolded. The statue itself was made of some kind of white rock.

Maka wondered where her owner was to be found. Where was his case being held. If she remembered correctly, it was room U-one-two. She looked around, where was this room U-one-two? She walked around the statue, and then she saw a counter with a slave standing behind it. He was probably owned by the court, so he probably knew this building.

"Excuse me", said Maka, "Could you tell me where room U-two-three is?".

"Down the stairs, then go right, then you'll find it on the left side", answered the slave. Maka thanked him and left. She went downstairs and followed the directions. The hallway was illuminated by these light spheres. She noticed that the numbers on the right were all by two larger than the number before, starting with zero-zero. After a short while she finally found room U-one-two, which she would call U-twelve. She didn't know what to to do. She knocked on the door.

"Enter", said a female voice. Maka found herself on some kind of loge. The railing was made of glass, with a sturdy wooden rail on top. She was in the top section of a multistory room. The top portion had a few rows of benches near the door. Roughly one quarter into the room was a large square hole, taking up almost all of the room. Along the edges of the wall went a walkway. On the far side was an elevated desk, bordered by two not as elevated desks. Halfway along the two side walkways were two desks, one on each side, opposing each other. It was a courtroom. Maka stepped up to the railing and looked down. The lower story's floor was made of smooth stone tiling, with a drain in the middle. Maka still couldn't see who had called her in, but she noticed a system of pulleys and ropes on the ceiling. Turning around, Maka noticed a staircase leading down, and Maka, more curious than afraid, went downstairs.

She saw a wide collection of different devices standing around the room. A even larger collection of objects was hanging on the wall. She could see a whip of the same build like the one her owner used on her, to it's right was a whip with nine strands instead, followed by a twelve stranded whip with knots at the end of each strand. There were also several pliers, most much larger than the ones found in toolboxes. But was most noticeable was a woman in a black dress, cleaning a metal pyramid with a square base positioned on a post.

"Can I help you?", asked the woman after she noticed Maka.

"What is this place?", asked Maka.

"This is the interrogation room, some call it torture chamber, I call it my workplace", said the woman, "my name's Louise, by the way".

"I'm Maka, madam", said Maka.

"Let me tell you what these things are", said Louise, "The thing I'm cleaning right now is called a Judas cradle. You make the subject sit on there", she pointed at the tip of the pyramid, "and then you hang weights from their feet. If you want, you can then whip them, too. I have a wide selection of whips here", she took a nine stranded whip from the wall, each of the strands split into three separate strands at the end, "This is my personal favorite, the cat of nine tails, but I like to call it Elizabeth. You probably can't see it, but at the end of each of these strands is a small metal weight, which tremendously increases the pain. This scourge draws blood after only one lash, the whippings typically become lethal somewhere after a hundred lashes, but you can easily deliver two hundred if you turn the subject around and whip them on the front, but if you do that, you have to be careful near the chest", she put the whip back and took a different one, "This one is nice, too, it's called a knout, it consists of a long handle, followed by a single leather strand twice as long. As you can see, the leather strand ends in a copper ring, attached is a triangular strip of hide, as long as the handle. Optimally the strip lands on it's edge, then it will cut like a knife. The only bad thing I can say about this is that you have to switch out the strip after every sixth stroke", she put back the knout, "If you want something a bit more practical, this bullwhip is right for you", Louise then lashed the air with the bullwhip, making a sound as if she had actually hit something, "The tip of the whip exceeds the speed of sound, that's what makes the sound". Maka had once tried to outrun sound, but failed. She knew that sound was extremely fast.

"That's nice and all, madam, but I have to deliver this meal to my master", said Maka, "but I can't find him".

"Maybe I can help, who is your master?", asked Louise.

"Dr. Evans", said Maka.

"He's currently in room one hundred and thirty three", said Louise, "At least that's were the trial is supposed to be. The room is on the first story".

"Thanks, I'll find it myself, madam. Goodbye", said Maka and left hurriedly.


	72. Marie

"Goodbye, hope to see you soon, your body gives me ideas", said Louise. Maka quickly found her way to room one-three-three, worried to find her owner waiting impatiently. She was already trying to come up with a believable excuse to avoid trouble. In front of room one-three-three she saw a blonde female slave sitting on a bench. Her hands had been cuffed in front of her, and she had been chained to the bench. Maka hoped that the lunch break was still upcoming, seeing as it was twenty past twelve. Maka knocked on the door. A police officer opened the door.

"What do you want?", asked the officer.

"I have to deliver this meal to Dr. Evans, officer", said Maka.

"Lunch has been postponed until the current witness has finished her testimony, you should probably wait outside", said the officer.

"Thanks, officer", said Maka. Maka sat down next to the blond slave and the officer closed the door again.

"Why are you crying?", asked Maka softly. At first, the slave didn't answer.

"I'm going to be tortured", sobbed the blond slave. She definitively had a very good reason to cry. Maka would have to thread with caution.

"What's your name?", asked Maka, "I'm Maka, by the way".

"I'm Marie", said Marie. Maka remembered that she heard her owner mention Marie when he discussed the case with Mr. Conway. No, Mr. Conway mentioned Marie, calling her a problem. Dr. Evans had answered that she wasn't that much of a problem, because slaves are only allowed to testify under torture, with two exceptions. Apparently, Marie did not fall under these exceptions. Maka wished there was something she could do to help Marie, but there was nothing. Right now, Marie couldn't even run away. But even if Marie could run away, she wouldn't get far, because there were police officers all over the place, since this was a courthouse.

"Why are you going to get tortured?", asked Maka.

"I have to testify in court", said Marie.

"So why are they going to torture you?", asked Maka.

"Because slaves are only allowed to testify under torture", said Marie.

"That's a really stupid law", said Maka.

"If it only didn't exist", said Marie, still sobbing.

"What is the trial about anyway?", asked Maka.

"Mr. Conway stands accused of murder", said Marie, her sobbing intensified.

"Is he guilty?", asked Maka.

"I don't know!", sobbed Marie.

"Then why do they want you testify?", asked Maka.

"My master lives across the street from him", said Marie, before she completely broke out into sobbing. Maka figured she should not have talked about the trial with Marie, thus remembering her of her upcoming session with Louise. Maybe Maka should try to distract Marie from the agonizing pain Louise was sure to inflict. Alone that judas cradle thing looked like it was extremely painful, and Maka didn't stick around to hear what the other devices were. Well, there was coal fire with metal rods sticking out of it, Louise must be heating them up to use them Marie. And this broad collection of whips Marie possessed, most of which Maka couldn't even name. Maybe Maka could talk with Marie about something else than the trial.

"Did you see that woman at the pillory out there?", asked Maka once Marie had calmed down a little.

"No, I've spent the last few months in jail", said Marie.

"How was it?", asked Maka, before she remembered that she as trying to distract Marie from her blight.

"Like being in a cell at a slave market", said Marie.

"I know what you mean", said Maka, "I hope the torture wont be that bad", Marie just began to cry more, her tears forming rivers on her cheeks. Maka just realized that she said exactly the wrong thing.

"You have to be brave", said Maka, "please, be brave". Maka didn't know what else to say, so she just waited and watched Marie cry. After a few minutes, Marie began to calm down, or maybe her body had reached a point where she couldn't cry anymore. Maka couldn't help but to feel sorry for this woman, who was perhaps ten years older than she was. Maka remained silent, because she didn't think she could say anything to help. Maka only wanted the court to take a break, so that she could give her owner his food and leave the sobbing Marie behind.

After some time, at one o'clock, to be exact, Maka heard a commotion coming from the courtroom. They seemed to emptying the room. The door opened and a lot of different people left the courtroom. After most people had left, Dr. Evans came through the door, accompanied by Mr. Conway.

"Here is your lunch, master", said Maka once she had recognized her owner. Her owner took the can and the mess kit, then he opened the can and looked at it's content.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, "I expected the lunch break to be at twelve o clock instead of one o'clock, so the meal might be cold by now".

"This is a vacuum flask", said Dr. Evans.

"Wow, that must have been expensive", said Mr Conway.

"I inherited it from my grandfather, along with this mess kit", said Dr. Evans.

"Who's that?", asked Mr. Conway, pointing at Marie.

"That's Marie", said Dr. Evans.

"She's hard to recognize, crying her eyes out like that", said Mr. Conway.

"Well, she has reason too", said Dr. Evans.

"Say, I don't now my way around this building that well, where is this room U-one-two?", asked Mr. Conway.

"In the basement, it's one of the torture chambers", said Dr. Evans.

"I hope they won't drag it out for too long", said Mr. Conway, "I hate hearing people scream".

"Marie's testimony is very important, so both Dr. Blackstar and I will try to get every detail", said Dr. Evans.

"And they will torture her the whole time?", asked Mr. Conway.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans. Marie began to cry again, more intensely than before. Maka had an idea.

"Shhhhhhhhh, shhhhhhhhhh", made Maka. She knew that this could calm babies down, but was it also effective on fully grown adults?


	73. Soul won his case

Dr. Evans began eating his meal, and Maka's shhhhhing proved ineffective at calming Marie. Once he had finished eating his meal, he handed Maka the dishes and the can.

"Go back and clean them", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She didn't want to leave Marie behind, but she would have to. So she left the crying Marie. She quickly walked to her owner's house, ignoring Patty's insults as she passed the pillory. Once Maka had reached her destination, she immediately got to work, she had lost a lot of time waiting for the trial to have a lunch break. She wondered when her owner would be back. He would come back once the trial was done, either going straight home or maybe stopping for something, maybe a drink at his client's house. The sooner he would come home, the less Marie would get tortured, or the less Marie got tortured, the earlier her owner would come home, again assuming that he would come straight home. She began to regularly check the time. She had arrived at half past one o'clock, now it was three o'clock. An hour later, it was four o'clock. Ten minutes later her owner indeed came home.

"Welcome home, master", said Maka, "should I take your coat, master".

"Yes", said Dr. Evans, Maka took the coat and hanged it on the coat hanger.

"Did you win the case, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans, "you may take the rest of the day off". Maka couldn't believe it, that was the first time he let her have time off.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, who didn't know yet what to do with her time off, so she went into her quarter and sat down on her bed. It felt good to be allowed to sit around and do nothing for once. But Maka could not enjoy her time of, she had think of Marie. Her owner would know what happened to Marie. Maybe she should ask. But she didn't want to risk getting a whipping on her day off. Whatever happened to Marie, it was already over. She should stop worrying. But she couldn't. Her owner started playing on his piano, it was a fast, happy tune. Maka went into the living room to listen to her owner's music. Maybe Maka should just try asking about what happened to Marie.

"Master, may I ask you something about the trial?", asked Maka.

"Yes?", said Dr. Evans.

"What happened to Marie?", asked Maka.

"Well, she got tortured", said Dr. Evans, "it's a rather curious law, but slaves are only allowed to testify under torture, barring a few exceptions. I personally think this law is idiotic, since people will confess to anything under torture, especially with such a skilled and enthusiastic torturers like Louise. Does this answer your question?". Maka was pleasantly surprised, while she that answer didn't provide any useful information at all, she thought her owner would threaten to whip her.

"Yes, thank you, master", said Maka.

"Say, do know how to play chess?", asked Dr. Evans.

"No, master", said Maka, her family had never been able to afford a chess set. Dr. Evans started to play a different song on his piano. Then she heard a knock on the door. Maka went and opened the door.

"Good day", said Maka, "should I tell master you're here, sir?"

"Yes, please", said Dr. Stein.

"What are your names, sirs?", asked Maka.

"Dr. Stein", said Dr. Stein.

"Dr. Albarn", said Dr. Albarn. Maka went into the living room and informed her owner about his guests.

"Tell them to come in", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went and ushered the two into his living room.

"Heard you won the case", said Dr. Stein.

"Yes, it was a quite complicated case, and the evidence was bad for my client, too", said Dr. Evans.

"Was he guilty?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"I already told you that I won the case, he has been found innocent", said Dr. Evans.

"I mean if he was actually innocent", said Dr Albarn.

"I can't tell you that, Spirit", said Dr. Evans.

"Anyway, I'm here to ask you if you might sell me your slave", said Dr. Stein. Maka gasped, if her owner said yes, it would be a death sentence.

"No", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm willing to pay you two hundred million dollars", said Dr. Stein, Maka gasped, that was much more than she was actually worth.

"No", said Dr. Evans.

"Two hundred billion dollars", offered Dr. Stein.

"No", said Dr. Evans, "I'm not selling her to you".

"Let me know if you change your mind.", said Dr. Stein.

"Where would you even get that much money?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I have rich sponsors, rich and powerful sponsors", said Dr. Stein.

"I didn't know Louise was rich", said Dr. Evans.

"What are you implying?", asked Dr. Stein.

"Nothing, just that Louise would like your 'research'", said Dr. Evans, making a gesture with both hands when he said the words "research".

"What are you saying about my research?", asked Dr. Stein, starting to get angry.

"That Louise would like it", said Dr. Evans, "Your 'research', after all is not so different from her job". Dr. Stein grabbed Dr. Evans by the shoulder and spun him and his chair around, before slapping him across the face while he was still in the middle of the spinning motion.

"I demand satisfaction!", shouted Dr. Stein.

"Fine, tomorrow at sunrise, on the field of repentance with pistols", said Dr. Evans, examining the blood trickling down his cheek, "twenty steps, I suggest we let Dr. Eisenberg organize the duel".

"I agree, Dr. Eisenberg will oversee it", said Dr. Stein.

"I'll go call him", said Dr. Evans and went into his kitchen.

"He says he can't make it, how about Dr. Blackstar instead?", yelled Dr. Evans.

"Fine", said Dr. Stein.

"He agreed to oversee the duel, you should go and find two seconds", said Dr. Evans.

"I will. See you tomorrow", said Dr. Stein, before he and Dr. Albarns left.


	74. The evening before the duel

Dr. Evans got up from his chair and walked upstairs, Maka followed him, he walked into his bathroom, and Maka waited outside. She wanted to know what would happen tomorrow. What if her owner didn't survive the duel? What would happen to her then? A few minutes later Dr. Evans left the bathroom, he had stopped the bleeding on his cheek with a band-aid. Maka wanted to ask him about the duel, but he just walked past her. She followed him downstairs and he went to Louis K's house. Maka watched from afar as he, after Louis K had come to the door, talked a bit to Louis K., before he went and walked in the direction of the bakery. Maybe he wanted Ms. Nakatsukasa to be his second, too. What bugged Maka was that one needed two seconds, instead of a second and a third. Maka went back inside and laid down on her bed.

Half an hour later, she heard her owner coming back, so she went to greet him. His skin had turned into a shade of painful red, he clearly had a nasty sunburn, but he didn't seem to mind. Before Maka could say anything, he went into his office. When would she have serve breakfast. Before the duel, or after. When would she have to stand up if she was to prepare breakfast before the duel. Earlier than usual, definitively, because the sun was already up when she got up. But Maybe her owner wouldn't want to eat before his duel was over, since he was about to participate in a live or death fight. Maka didn't know exactly who she should root for. If Dr. Evans won, her situation would not change in the slightest, except that there would be one less person trying to kill her. But why did Dr. Stein want her? According to Lefty, he bought slaves solely for the purpose of killing them, probably in some gruesome manner. Therefore, Dr. Stein wanted to kill her, for some reason. But why her? Why not somebody else? Then Maka remembered that Dr. Stein had also asked for a grigori. What was a grigori? When Dr. Stein was eating dinner at her owner's house, he had said that he needed some rare sort of test subject. He probably meant grigori when he said "rare test subject". Was she a grigori? If so, did that mean that she had some sort of dormant super power? That would come in handy. But maybe being a grigori was more of curse than a blessing. But nobody had noticed anything about her by now, except Dr. Stein. Maybe it was something really subtle, that only an expert could see. But why hadn't he made an offer to buy her at the dinner? Maybe he had already spent his sponsor's money. So he couldn't afford her back then. But why did he start offering far over what Dr. Evans paid for her? Maybe Dr. Evans would not simply let her be killed, and he knew it. This would be a good thing, since it meant that for some reason, her owner was interested in her safety for non-financial reasons. What would happen to her, if her owner died in the duel? She would either be inherited by one his relatives, or she would be sold at the slave market again. So the best case scenario was that it would extremely complicate her escape, the worst case that she ended up in Dr. Stein's hand. If her owner lost the duel, she would have to make a run for it.

Concluding that she would probably end up dead if her owner lost the duel, she decided to pack the things for her escape. She went into the basement and dug out the backpack she had found a few days earlier. She then took a few empty wine bottles and filled them with water, plugging them with their corks, but taking care that she would be able to open them with her bare hands. She now had water for a few days. Then she hid the wine bottles in the backpack. After she had prepared the water, she changed into a new dress, putting the old one in the backpack instead of the laundry. That way she could put on a second dress when she got cold. She would have to pack bread tomorrow, when she would have to prepare breakfast, or before the duel, if her owner didn't want to eat breakfast.

Maka contemplated how good her changes were of successfully escaping. She lacked any means to remove her collar, so she would still easily be identified as a slave, and if someone read the label, he would instantly figure out that she was a fugitive. The odds were therefore not as much in her favor as she wanted them to be, considering she would have her owner's bounty hunters to avoid. But if her owner died during the duel tomorrow, he would not be able to put a bounty on her head. And since she wouldn't be involved in his death, putting a bounty on her head would not be the first thing on the mind of his heirs. Maybe the confusion would last long enough to delay the bounty hunters by a day or two, or maybe they would entirely forget to put a price on her head. Thus her owner's death in a duel would be an excellent opportunity to escape, and it would be necessary, too.

She walked into the kitchen, to find her owner eating a slice of bread as he left for the anteroom. She followed and him and saw that he went to bed, he must be trying to catch some sleep before the duel. Maka tried to sleep, too, but found it harder to fall asleep than when she was chained in the slavers' truck, she couldn't stop worrying about the duel, while they wouldn't shoot at her, unless the duel consisted of shooting apples of her head, she couldn't shake the feeling that she forgot something in her emergency plan. How would she know that her owner had lost? She would have to attend the duel, but would her owner allow her to do so?


	75. The duel

Maka could barely sleep that night. She frequently woke up during the night. At four o'clock, she heard her owner coming downstairs, so she got up, turned on the light, and looked at the clock. She hoped she wasn't in trouble because breakfast wasn't ready yet, but it also wasn't seven o'clock yet. She saw her owner in the anteroom, he was wearing an elegant black suit.

"Should I prepare breakfast, master?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans, a few moments later he added, "hand me my coat".

"Yes, master", said Maka, "Should I follow you with the parasol, master?"

"Yes", said Dr. Evans. Maka took out the parasol and followed Dr. Evans out of the house. He stopped by Louis K's house, who then followed them, dressed in a coat made from leather. Maka wondered what kind leather he wore, it wasn't from a cow, or pig. They then went to the bakery, where Ms. Nakatsukasa was already waiting, wearing a elegant black dress and carrying a shotgun.

"You know you're supposed to bring a handgun, right?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I know, but I don't have one", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Here, I have two", said Louis K, handing her a pistol.

"Thanks", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. They walked through the city for quite a while, the streets were all empty. Maka liked the way the streets looked so early before sunrise in such a big city. In was like walking through large stopped machine. They came across the market, Patty was still standing at the pillory. She must be freezing. A police officer was sleeping on the staircase leading up to the pillory, wrapped in a blanket. Maka looked around for something suitable to throw at Patty, but she didn't find anything. She also didn't know whether her owner would approve of throwing stuff at Patty.

"Where is this field of repentance, madam?", Maka asked Ms. Nakatsukasa quietly.

"I don't really know, when I was younger, I was afraid of it", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Why is that, madam?", asked Maka.

"You'll see soon enough", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka would have no choice but to wait and see. A short while after they had left the city, they turned right onto a dirt road. It began to smell horrible, like rotting animal carcasses. The road continued to go uphill for a while, not very steep, but still tiring. Besides the road was a rotten corpse impaled on a stake. The corpse wore a slave collar. A tree had several people hanging from its branches, in different stages of decomposition, again they were all wearing slave collars. In fact they had been hanged by their collars. Their hands were still tied behind their backs. A short distance from the tree was a wheel atop a long pole. Maka saw a mangled form on wheel. A bird landed next to it and picked at the body, the body moved. Maka saw some crosses in the distance, all having someone hanging from them. Maka wondered how long death by crucifixion lasted. To the left of the path was a body without skin, hanging by its food form a tree, along with several others. The field was filled with executed slaves, some of them hadn't died yet.

They followed the path through the field of repentance until they met with Dr. Blackstar, who was waiting for them near the crosses, along with another man.

"You're first", said Dr. Blackstar, he was carrying a case bound in leather.

"Let's hope Dr. Stein shows up", said Dr. Evans. They waited a while. The suns beams were starting to shine over the horizon. Dr. Evans checked his watch impatiently.

"He should hurry up", said Dr. Evans.

"Well, the duel starts at sunrise, not earlier", said Dr. Blackstar.

"I see you brought my price along", said Dr. Stein, who was accompanied by Josef K. and Dr. Albarn.

"Well, now that both parties are here, we can start", said Dr. Blackstar, holding up the leather bound case, "Please step up". Both Dr. Evans and Dr. Stein went up to Dr. Blackstar, to look at the case, followed by their seconds.

"As you see, the case is still sealed, these pistols are brand new", said Dr. Blackstar. Dr. Stein turned his screw. Everybody nodded in agreement.

"We will now open the case", said Dr. Blackstar, opening the case and breaking the seal, "These pistols were manufactured by Johnson and Richards firearms, caliber nine millimeters. Please take the pistols now and load them with the cartridges provided". Dr. Evans and Dr. Stein both took out one of the pistols, wonderfully ornate pistols, decorated with gold lining, forming a picture of two gentlemen firing at each other. Then they took a bullet each and loaded it into the pistol. They then put the guns back in the case and began to remove their coat and the jacket of their suit, they were both wearing a white shirt underneath, handing the clothes to their seconds. Then they removed the holster of their guns and handed it to their seconds, too. After they had removed the excess clothes, they both picked up their pistols again.

"You will stand back to back, and at my command, you will both walk twenty steps away from each other in a straight line, as I count the steps. Once you have walked the twenty steps, you will turn around and open fire. After the duel the doctor", said Dr. Blackstar, pointing at the other man who was waiting there with him, "will see to your wounds. If you turn around before you have walked twenty steps, I will shoot you and the doctor won't help you, do you understand the rules?". Dr. Evans, Dr. Stein and their seconds all answered yes.

"Then the contest of honor shall begin", said Dr. Blackstar, "Please take position". Dr. Evans and Dr. Stein positioned themselves back to back, facing away from each other, their guns raised.

"Go", said Dr. Blackstar, "One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen. Sixteen. Seventeen. Eighteen. Nineteen. Twenty".

Two shot's rang out. For a moment, both duelists stood, pointing guns at each other, surrounded by the a cloud of smoke, then Dr. Evans dropped his gun and gripped his left arm, his shirt turning red above the elbow. Dr. Stein staggered a bit, feeling the hole in his head with his hands, before he collapsed.


	76. After the duel

The doctor immediately hurried to his side. He felt for a pulse.

"Looks like that was your last duel", said the doctor, closing the still open eyes. Dr. Albarn knelt down next to Dr. Stein's corpse and began to cry. The doctor then went to Dr. Evans and began to examine the arm.

"Could you remove the shirt so I can get a better look at your arm?", asked the doctor. Dr. Evans removed his shirt with help of his seconds, moving his arm obviously caused him great pain. Maka unfolded the parasol and held it to protect Dr. Evans from the sun's rays, noticing several small scars on his body, along with a really large diagonal one going over the chest. The doctor looked at the arm, before turning to his bag. He took a clean white rag and pressed on the wound on Dr. Evans arm to stop the bleeding. After the bleeding had been stopped, he took out another rag and a bottle of a clear colorless liquid. The bottles label was mostly white, but it had a small picture of a fire in it's lower left corner. The doctor then drenched his second rag with the clear liquid before he started to clean the wound. Dr. Evans winced in pain.

"The bullet went past the bone, I will have to sew the wound shut", said the doctor, "This might hurt somewhat. The doctor then proceeded to take out his sewing equipment and sewed the wound shut. Then he bandaged it.

"The strings can be removed in two weeks", said the doctor, "avoid putting strain on the arm until then".

"I know, this wasn't my first duel, but thank you", said Dr. Evans.

"You're welcome", said the doctor, "I'll need to call someone to come and pick up Dr. Stein's body before the carrion eaters get to it".

"Thank you, I'll be on my way then", said Dr. Evans. Louis K handed him his shirt back and he put it on without help as he did his jacket and his coat after. Then they walked away from the duel. Dr. Blackstar and Dr. Stein's seconds remained on site. Apparently they weren't allowed to leave until Dr. Stein's body had been picked up. Dr. Albarn was still crying next to Dr. Stein's corpse, they must have been very close to each other. As they were on the way back, Maka got another good look at the field of repentance. Since it would be best to delay her escape until she had found a way to remove her collar, she should undo the preparations she had made yesterday, so that her owner wouldn't find them, there was no telling what he might do to her if he found out that she is planning to escape. They walked past the market place, where Patty had woken up by now.

"You're holding an umbrella?", mocked Patty, "I guess you're not really capable of handling anything more complicated". Maka grudgingly remained silent.

"Too bad there's nothing to throw here", said Louis K, "we'd have to wait until the market opens". After a short while later, they arrived at the bakery.

"I just hope Meme hasn't burned anything", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, before she went into the bakery.

"I'll buy a rye bread while I'm here", said Dr. Evans. In the bakery, they saw that Meme had managed to burn some of the breads. She looked sheepishly at Ms. Nakatsukasa, who simply looked mad.

"It was a rye bread you wanted, right?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans. Ms. Nakatsukasa looked for an unburnt one and quickly found one.

"Here you go, that will be seven hundred fifty dollars, please", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, handing the bread to Dr. Evans, who handed it to Maka.

"Here, keep the change", said Dr. Evans as he handed Ms. Nakatsukasa the money.

"Thank you", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Please come again".

"I will", said Dr. Evans as he left the bakery. Louis K had already gone ahead without them. When they arrived at Dr. Evans' house, Maka took his coat and hanged it on the coat hanger before she prepared breakfast. After her owner had eaten breakfast he went into his office. Maka used the opportunity to unpack the backpack. She took out the dress and put it on over her dress. Then she emptied the wine bottles and put them back where she found them. Then she hid the backpack again before she went into her quarter. There she took of the dress and put it in the laundry. Now her owner would not find anything that might get him to think that she was planning to escape.


	77. Soul's father

Seeing as the collar was still the biggest problem she had to solve, she once again tried to figure something out to find a way to remove it. But the only person that could possibly give her one most likely wouldn't. Maka mentally went through the list of people who would possibly know how to remove the collar without the key. Vanessa, Dr. Eisenberg, his bodyguard and Louis K. Vanessa wouldn't tell her how to remove the collar, even though she once had removed one such collar herself, though not hers. Maybe Maka should try getting information out of Louis K. But he didn't like her. Maybe she could get him drunk. But how would her owner react if he found that she had plundered his wine cellar. Also, Louis K had demonstrated an extraordinary resistance to alcohol, she would have to steal tons of alcohol. It would be better if getting him drunk happened with her owners approval, which would only be possible if Louis K was over for dinner or another event. Maybe she could influence this somewhat. Then, once he was drunk, she would quietly get him to talk once at the first opportunity. Then she remembered that such an opportunity didn't present itself at the last dinner. It would be extremely difficult.

When Maka looked out of the window of the anteroom, she saw Louis K leaving his house to board a carriage. How long would he stay away? Probably only for a few days, like last time. She would have to ask Jonathan about this. She would have to wait for a suitable opportunity to talk to him. Or she could just go and talk to him, it was unlikely that her owner would notice. But she wanted to avoid getting another whipping. She would wait for an opportunity to talk to Jonathan without arousing suspicion.

She waited for several days. There was a opportunity on the second day when Jonathan was weeding Louis K's lawn, but her owner send her to buy groceries. When she came back, Jonathan had already finished weeding. But she would have an opportunity when Jonathan was raking the lawn, a task he fulfilled despite it being completely unnecessary, since there wasn't anything to be raked on the lawn, and something Louis K would never notice, since he was away. On Friday, Jonathan was raking the lawn, and Maka found it to be a good time to weed Dr. Evans' lawn.

"Stop whatever you're doing at the moment and go buy some groceries", said Dr. Evans just as Maka was about to start weeding the lawn.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "what should I buy?".

"I'll have a visitor, so I need you to prepare a three course meal for two", said Dr. Evans.

"What should I prepare, master?", asked Maka.

"I don't care", said Dr. Evans, "Here's some money to buy the necessary ingredients. Don't think about embezzling anything, I'll count the money after you come back".

"Yes, master", said Maka, "I would never even think about stealing anything of yours". Then Maka left to buy groceries. On the market, she saw a live duck. She thought that her owner would be very satisfied with a duck as the main course, and that two people couldn't eat a duck, so she bought the duck, which had it's wings and feet tied. She also bought some vegetables for a soup and the stuffing for the duck and some apples for an apple pie. When she arrived back at her owner's house, she gave him the change and showed him what she had bought.

"You bought a live duck?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"You sure you can prepare a live duck?", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka before she went into the kitchen, where she noticed that her owner did not have a meat cleaver, which would be necessary to decapitate the duck.

"Excuse me, master", said Maka, "but I couldn't find a meat cleaver".

"Louis K should have one", said Dr. Evans, "Ask if I could borrow it".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She smiled as she turned away from her owner, a opportunity to ask Jonathan about when Louis K would come back had arisen. She knocked at Louis K's door and after a few minutes Jonathan openened.

"My master asks if he could borrow Louis K's meat cleaver", said Maka.

"I don't see why not", said Jonathan, going back into the house. A short time later he came back with a large meat cleaver.

"Thank you", said Maka, "Say, when will Louis K be back?".

"He said he would travel to Europe, so he'll most likely be gone for at least half a year", said Jonathan.

"Thank you", said Maka. She could rule Louis K. out. He would be in some unknown place for the rest of the year. But where was this Europe? Alone the name intrigued her. Maybe it was a nice place to visit or even to live in permanently. But of course, no place was better to live in permanently than West Wyoming, but the word "Europe" sounded like it described a place that was at least in the top ten. Maka went back and started preparing the duck. First, she tore out all of the duck's feathers. Maka always hated how the ducks struggled during this process. Of course, this duck couldn't escape, since it's wings and legs were tied. Then, Maka held the duck down and chopped its head of. She hanged it over the sink to bleed for a while, all the blood would have to get out. While she was waiting for that to happen, she worked on the apple pie. Once the duck had finished bleeding, she disemboweled it and filled it's belly with stuffing. After the duck was prepared thus far, she put it in the oven and turned to preparing the soup.

After a few hours, the duck was almost done, there was a knock on the door. Dr. Evans opened.

"Father!", said Dr. Evans.

"Soul!", said Dr. Evans' father, "What's for dinner?".

"Maka is currently preparing a duck", said Dr. Evans.

"Maka?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"My slave", said Dr. Evans.

"I hope she can cook", said his father.

"She'll get a whipping if she screws up", said Dr. Evans. Maka then served the appetizer and informed her master that she had served the appetizer.

"Seems like you didn't buy her as a sex slave", said Dr. Evans' father, grabbing Maka's chest, who resisted the urge to step out of his reach.

"I'm a simple man", said Dr. Evans as his father was squeezing Maka's breast, while Maka wished he would stop.

"Well, anyway", said Dr. Evans' father, taking his hand of Maka's chest, "I'm here because I want you to get married".


	78. Family planning

"Really?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes", said his father.

"I thought Wes would get married first", said Dr. Evans.

"You're in a very good age to get married", said his father.

"So, who do you want me to marry?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Julia Albarn", said his father.

"Dr. Spirit Albarn's niece?", asked Dr. Evans.

"You know her already?", asked his father, surprised.

"No, but he talked about her sometimes", said Dr. Evans.

"Anyway, I managed to negotiate a very large dowry, marrying her should double your fortune", said his father, "and this union will cement the political and business alliances between our two families".

"Why's the dowry so high?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Because both families are very interested in said union, but the Albarns are more interested", said his father, "Since Julia hasn't reached marriageable age yet, the ceremony will take place in a year, a week after her birthday".

"Seems like I have some time left to enjoy life", said Dr. Evans.

"You won't have to stop after you're married, just keep it a bit more discrete", said his father.

"I know that", said Dr. Evans, "I need a drink. Maka, go fetch something".

"Yes, master", said Maka and brought her owner a glass of water. Dr. Evans took the glass, put it down on the table and slapped Maka across the face.

"When I said 'drink' I meant alcoholic", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master, I didn't know that", said Maka, rubbing her cheek, "I'll get an alcoholic drink right away, master".

"You remind me of when my father told me I would be getting married", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka quickly went into the basement and pulled out a bottle of wine from the wine rack and brought it back up.

"Is this wine good, master?", asked Maka, handing him the bottle.

"Yes, it's quite good" said Dr. Evans, handing her the bottle back. Maka went and filled two wine glasses with the wine and brought the wine to her owner and his father.

"I assume you will be staying for a few days", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, for about a week", said his father.

"Maka can help you unpack", said Dr. Evans, "where's your luggage, anyway?".

"There was a problem at the train station, so I left Samatha behind to pick up my luggage and carry it here", said his father.

"She seems to be taking her time", said Dr. Evans.

"If she doesn't arrive soon, she'll be in trouble", said his father.

"Did you tell her the way?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes", said his father. Maka hoped that Samatha arrived before they would punish her. Dr. Evans downed his wine.

"I should have called for whiskey", said Dr. Evans. Maka came with the bottle and refilled his glass.

"How is your work going?", asked his father.

"I won Mr. Conway's case", said Dr. Evans.

"What was he accused of?", asked his father.

"Murder of his older brother", explained Dr. Evans, "Dr. Blackstar said he wanted to take the whole inheritance for himself".

"How did you get him acquitted?", asked his father.

"His neighbor from across the street has a slave named Marie", explained Dr. Evans, "she was working in the yard before the crime took place. Mr. Conway arrived at his house early in the morning".

"After he committed the crime?", asked his father.

"No, he was taking care of a long business meeting, which went on and on", said Dr. Evans, "the protocols suggest that he went straight home, the question is when he left the house again. That's were Marie came into play. She was working on her master's front lawn and must have seen when Mr. Conway left the house".

"But she didn't have a watch", said his father.

"Yes, the only way to figure out the time was to match up her observations with the events we know transpired in the neighborhood".

"And she observed something before Mr. Conway left, which proved his alibi?", asked his father.

"Exactly", said Dr. Evans.

"It's a good thing she was being tortured, or else she might have lied", said his father, Dr. Evans slightly shook his head, almost unoticable.

"Maka, bring the main course", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she served the duck. Then she washed the dishes from the appetizer. After she had dried them, she came back into the dining room, to see if her owner and his father needed anything. She saw that Dr. Evans had emptied his wine glass once again, while his father's was still half full, so she filled her owner's glass once again.

"Samantha is taking her time", said Dr. Evans' father. Then there was a knock on the door.

"Speak of the devil", said Dr. Evans, gesturing for Maka to answer the door. Maka did as she was told or rather, gestured. At the door was a police officer, holding a young, blonde female slave by her hair. The slave was carrying a large trunk.

"Is this Dr. Evans' residence? I suspect this slave to be a runaway", said the police officer.

"Yes, officer", said Maka, "Master is dining with his father. I'll tell him you're here". Maka went into the dining room and told her owner about the officer.

"Good evening officer", said Dr. Evans', "What seems to be the problem?". The officer told him the same thing he had told Maka.

"You didn't read further than the name, didn't you?", asked Dr. Evans, "She's probably my father's slave, not mine. I'll go get him".

"Thank you", said the officer, giving the slave's hair a tug. Dr. Evans fetched his father.

"I see you found Samantha and brought her here", said Dr. Evans' father, taking out his wallet, handing the police officer a bill, "Here's a tip".

"I'd need to see your ID before I hand her to you", said the officer, "I also can't accept your money, I'm sorry".

"No problem", said Dr. Evans' father, taking out a card and handing it to the police officer, putting his money back into his wallet. The police officer pushed Samantha to him.

"Good night", wished the police officer as he left. Dr. Evans' father wished him the same.


	79. Samantha

"You were supposed to be here...", said Dr. Evans's father, turning to Samantha, while checking his pocket watch, "fifteen minutes ago. What do you have to say for yourself?".

"I'm sorry, master", said Samantha, "I couldn't find the way, all the houses here look the same".

"She 's right, you know", said Dr. Evans, "The houses here are designed to look the same. It's to emulate a building style from the golden age, the so called sub urb".

"You're saying laziness is an artistic choice now?", asked his father.

"Well, it was justified during the golden age, they had to provide many workers with acceptable housing", explained Dr. Evans, "but today, it's purely done out of nostalgia".

"I'm not under the expression that it's easy to get lost here", said his father, turning back to his slave, "If I had no trouble finding the way, then why did you?".

"You're much more intelligent than I am, master", said Samantha, which Maka considered a smart move.

"I hope a whipping will sharpen your sense of direction", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Please, master, have mercy", begged Samantha, now on the verge of tears.

"The dinner is getting cold", said Dr. Evans.

"Right, Maka can take care of this", said his father.

"If she does this, there will be nobody to bring wine", said Dr. Evans.

"Seems like Samantha gets a stay of execution", said his father.

"Thank you, master", said Samatha. Dr. Evans and his father went back to the meal. Maka retreated to the kitchen, and Samantha followed her.

"So, you're Samantha, right?", asked Maka.

"Yes, and you are?", asked Samantha.

"Maka", said Maka.

"How does your master treat you?", asked Samantha.

"He makes me work a lot", said Maka.

"Does he use you?", asked Samantha.

"What do you mean?", asked Maka.

"Does he use you for sex?", asked Samantha.

"No", said Maka.

"You're lucky", said Samantha. It was now that Maka noticed Samantha's quite beautiful body, if they had met before Maka's capture, Maka would have been jealous of Samantha's perfectly shaped breasts and her elegant hip, if one also considered her bright red hair, it was obvious that this girl would have many admirers if she was free.

"How was your trip?", asked Maka.

"Nice", said Samantha, "I got a seat next to the window".

"I've never traveled by train", said Maka.

"Well, a train wagon is basically a room on wheels", said Samantha, "Master paid for me to travel in third class".

"What's third class?", asked Maka.

"The train's wagon are differently priced", explained Samantha, "First class is the best, fourth class is the worst".

"Wow, he spent more money than necessary so that you could travel in third instead of fourth class, he's generous", said Maka.

"He wanted to use me during the train ride", said Samantha.

"How does a third class wagon look like, anyway", asked Maka.

"Wooden benches in rows, eight people per row", said Samantha.

"And fourth class?", asked Maka.

"Basically a big empty room with hundreds of people in them", said Samantha.

"And second class?", asked Maka.

"Each passenger has a bed for himself", said Vanessa.

"And first class?", asked Maka.

"A small apartment with bedroom, bathroom and a bar", said Samantha.

"That's how master's father traveled?", asked Maka.

"Yes, obviously", said Samantha.

"Maka!", yelled Dr. Evans angrily. Maka hurried into the kitchen, this couldn't be good.

"What is, master?", asked Maka.

"There's a hair in the stuffing", said Dr. Evans' father.

"I'm sorry, it was an accident", said Maka.

"I'm sure a whipping will help prevent future accidents", said Dr. Evans.

"Please have mercy, master", begged Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans, "I'll punish you after dinner, you'll also get no dinner today, if I catch you eating anything, I'll rip your fingernails out".

"Yes, master", said Maka, on the verge of tears.

"Tell Samantha that I want her to take a shower after her whipping", said Dr. Evans father.

"Yes,...", said Maka, not knowing how to address him, "master's father".

"The proper title would be 'old master'", said Dr. Evans, "Say it".

"Yes, old master", said Maka.

"Bring us the dessert now", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, taking the plates and bringing them into the kitchen, before she brought the dessert. She also refilled Dr. Evans' wine glass, before she went back into the kitchen. Samantha had already started cleaning the dishes.

"By the way, your master says that he wants you to shower after your whipping", said Maka.

"I could have guessed as much", said Samantha, "He always wants me to be clean in the evening".

"Isn't he married?", asked Maka.

"Yes, he is", said Samantha.

"Say, what kind of whip does your master use?", asked Samantha.

"Seven strands, each about this long", said Maka, showing the length of the strands with her hands.

"Ouch", said Samantha, "I shouldn't have asked".

"Why do you care what whip I'll get whipped with, anyway?", asked Maka.

"Because I'll get whipped with the same one", said Samantha.

"Your master didn't pack his own whip?", asked Maka.

"No, why should he?", asked Samantha.

"Maka, bring more wine", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went downstairs to get wine. Once down, she showed Samantha, who had followed her, the door with the shower behind it. Then she picked out a bottle and showed it Samantha.

"That's a nice grape on there", said Samantha.

"You can't read?", asked Maka.

"No, can you?", asked Samantha.

"Just a little", said Maka.

"Can you, or can you not?", asked Samantha.

"I guess I can't", said Maka, "but I wish I could".

"What's taking you two so long?", yelled Dr. Evans father. Maka and Samantha hurried upstairs.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, apologizing to her owner.

"I'm sorry, too, master", said Samatha, apologizing to her owner.

"You'll both get ten extra lashes", said Dr. Evans' father. Both Maka and Samantha begged for mercy, but it was futile, Dr. Evans' father could not be swayed, and Dr. Evans emptied his wine glass.


	80. Suffer and see

The two men continued eating their meal. Maka and Samantha watched in fearful anticipation.

"This apple pie is quite good", said Dr. Evans' father, "If there hadn't been a hair in the stuffing, it would have been a perfect dinner".

"Yeah, Maka can cook", said Dr. Evans as he swallowed the last bite of the meal, "Maka, clean the dishes, then prepare for the punishment".

"Yes, master", said Maka as she grabbed the plates. She cleaned them with Samantha. Maka wanted to do the dishes as slowly as possible, but she didn't want to know what would happen if her owner came to punish her and didn't find her in her quarter. Once she had finished the dishes, she went and fetched the whip, her owner would not want to fetch it himself. Then she showed Samantha her quarter. Once there, they both disrobed.

"Who should go first?", asked Samantha.

"Aren't our masters going to decide on that?", asked Maka.

"If there isn't one of us secured to the whipping post when they come, we'll get even more lashes", said Samantha. Maka gulped, she was already going to receive ten extra lashes.

"You go first", said Maka.

"There's no time to adjust the post to my height", said Samantha, "You go first". Samantha had grabbed Maka and was moving to restrain her. Samantha's argument was sound, maybe it would indeed be better for both of them if Maka went first. Samantha restrained the wrist of Maka's right hand, forcing Maka on her tiptoes. It would still be possible to demand that Samantha went first. Then Samantha restrained Maka's left arm by the wrist. Now it was impossible for Maka to free herself. Samantha then restrained Maka's arms by the elbow. A few minutes after she was done, Dr. Evans and his father entered.

"At least you can do something right", said Dr. Evans' father.

"But I must say, Samantha's quite a stunning beauty", said Dr. Evans.

"I always liked redheads", said Dr. Evans father, grabbing Samantha's left breast, "and these breast are very fine, too".

"That's an understatement", said Dr. Evans.

"They don't just look perfect, they also feel perfect", said his father, "See for yourself".

"Sure", said, said Dr. Evans, grabbing Samantha's right breast, "Soft and firm". Samantha looked like she regretted not going first.

"You can try her out if you want to", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Don't you want to use her tonight?", asked Dr. Evans.

"How about you use my slave, and I use yours", suggested Dr. Evans' father.

"I'll think about it", said Dr. Evans, taking his hand of Samantha's breast.

"I guess we should get this over with", said Dr. Evans' father, looking at Maka, "The earlier we finish this, the sooner we can enjoy ourselves. This room is also incredibly crowded".

"You're right", said Dr. Evans. Without any further hesitation, he started the whipping. Maka screamed when the seven strands of the whip made contact with her naked skin, right in the center of her back. Then the second the lash landed, on her shoulder. Unlike the last time, he didn't seem to employ any pattern. Did this make the whipping more painful, or was were her first two whippings the same in regard to pain? This whipping would be the worst. Another painful lash landed on her back, the strands interfered with the lingering pain from the first strike, creating an even more intense pain. Dr. Evans' father barked an order at Samantha, Maka couldn't understand it because of the fourth lash, the fifth one caused her to break out in tears. Her crying and the repetitive sound of the whip hitting her naked flesh started to blend out all other sounds. The pain was erasing all other sensations. After what felt like an eternity, the pain started to diminish. The whipping had finally ended. Once Maka had regained her composure a bit, she pulled herself back onto her tiptoes, so that the restraints would stop cutting into her flesh.

"And now", said Dr. Evans instead of releasing her from the restraints, "Ten more lashes". Maka cried out in despair.

"One!", said Dr. Evans, somehow this lash hurt more than the previous ones, "Two!", he left a short delay between the lashes, "Three!", she could feel each individual lash, "Four!", at least keeping count would not be a problem, "Five!", he was starting to slow down, "Six!", four more to go, "Seven!", almost there. She expected lash number eight, but it didn't come. Maybe her owner had decided to show mercy.

"Eight! Nine! Ten!", these three lashes in close succession brought a crescendo of pain. Maka hung limply in the restraints. At last, the whipping was over. Dr. Evans removed the restraints. Maka fell to the floor.

"Get up", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka, not wanting to get into any additional trouble, quickly struggled to get onto her feet. She wanted to say "yes, master", but she was crying to much to do so.

"Restrain Samantha", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", sobbed Maka. Maka looked at the whipping post restraints. It was a quite straightforward design. The restraints were on a kind of sled in a rail, held at the set high by two removable bolts. Which high was the right for Samantha? Maka grabbed Samantha by her right arm, and pulled her to the whipping post. Samantha didn't resist. Maka restrained Samantha, but Samantha, even thought she seemed to be her age, was a bit larger than she was. So Maka removed the bolts and pushed the restraints upwards, until Samantha was standing on her tiptoes.

"A bit higher", ordered Dr. Evans' father. Maka obliged. Samantha was now standing on her tiptoes in such a way that either the restraints or the toes had to carry her body weight. Now that Samantha was properly restrained, Maka, still sniffling, went to where Samantha was standing during her whipping.

"If you look away, you'll get another whipping", said Dr. Evans, "Understood?".

"Yes, master", said Maka, just as Dr. Evans' father started whipping Samantha, who started crying after four lashes, pathetically arching her back away from each lash. Watching Samantha getting whipped was uncomfortable for Maka, it reminded her of her own whipping, minutes ago. It must have been even worse for Samantha, watching Maka get whipped, knowing that she would suffer the exact same fate in a few minutes. But now Maka's whipping was done, she only had to watch Samantha's, and then she'd be allowed to lie down, unlike Samantha, who would have to take a shower and serve Dr. Evans' father before she would be allowed to sleep. After several lashes had been applied, Samantha's cries had changed in tone and volume, she stopped arching her back after each lash, but she was also no longer able to keep herself on her tiptoes, which caused her to start kicking her legs, only hitting the floor. After some time, her screaming became a punctuated by gasps for air, and her back was covered by vicious red marks. This was when Dr. Evans' father stopped the whipping. After Samantha had regained some of her composure, he announced the ten extra lashes. He delivered the first two lashes in rapid succession, then he slowed down between each lash, until he waited almost a minute between lash number six and lash number seven. Then he delivered lash eight to ten basically at once. Samantha was then released from the whipping post.

"Go take a shower", orderd Dr. Evans' father, turning to his son, he added, "if you let me try Maka, I'll let you use Samantha".


	81. Distress

Dr. Evans thought about it for some time. Maka hoped he would refuse.

"Sorry, I'm engaged", said Dr. Evans, "Need some time to think". Maka sighed in relief.

"Well, maybe you'd want to try her out tomorrow", said his father.

"Maka, help my father settle into one of the guest rooms", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, after she had put her dress back on. Maka went and carried the trunk upstairs, which turned out to be very heavy. She thought she should put him in the room next to her owner's bedroom.

"I don't want this one", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka brought him to the next room.

"This one is too white", complained Dr. Evans' father.

"All the guest rooms have the same color, old master", said Maka.

"I want another room", ordered Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka, leading him to the last guest room.

"This room is cool", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Should I unpack for you, old master?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka tried to open the trunk but found it locked, but Dr. Evans' father unlocked it. Maka went to put his clothes into the drawers of the dresser. When Samantha entered, she was promptly ordered to help her unpack the clothes. After they were finished, Maka was ordered to leave the room, and Samantha was ordered to undress. Maka knew what would happen to Samantha now. Maka wondered what she should do if she one day had to provide the same services. Maybe she could ask Samantha for advice. Where would Samantha sleep tonight and over the next week? It was unlikely that she would get one of the guestrooms. Maybe she would have to sleep on the floor. A rhythmic moaning was heard from the room Dr. Evans' father occupied. Maka found it best if she simply asked permission to go to bed. But where was her owner? Maybe she should just go to bed without asking, her owner would probably just call for her if he wanted anything.

"Maka!", called Dr. Evans from his room as she was already on the stairs. Maka went into her owner's room.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka. Dr. Evans remained silent, pacing up and down for a few minutes.

"Roll up your dress", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, wishing for noncooperation to be a viable option. She held the edge of her dress over her breast, fully exposing her front.

"I should have accepted my father's offer", said Dr. Evans to himself, before he resumed pacing up and down. Maka rolled her dress back down in relief.

"Who allowed you to cover yourself?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, rolling her dress back up. Dr. Evans resumed pacing up and down, glaring at her body as she held her dress up. Dr. Evans took of his shirt, revealing a sleeveless shirt and the holster with his gun. He hung his shirt on a valet stand, before he removed the gun from his holster. He pointed the gun at Maka before he put it into the safe, which he promptly locked. Maka tried to catch the combination, but she was to far away to make out the numbers on the dial. Maybe trying them all out would work. But what if the dial jammed if the wrong combination had been tried to many times. He resumed pacing back and forth. Her attention was drawn by the wound he had sustained in the duel earlier. It was still bandaged, the bandage looked like it should be changed soon. Slowly, she started to feel cold, standing there basically motionless and almost naked. Dr. Evans sat down on his bed.

"Bring me something to drink", ordered Dr. Evans, "something strong".

"Yes, master", said Maka, before walking out of the room. Once outside, she rolled her dress back down. Then she went into the basement and searched her owner's wine rack. He wanted something strong. But how would she find something strong. She shouldn't mess this up, her owner seemed to be in a very agitated state. She grabbed a bottle with a rectangular base. The label looked the same than the whiskey bottle Louis K had emptied at once, except that this one was still full, something that would change quickly if Louis K got his hands on it. Maka proceeded to bring the bottle up to her owner, rolling her dress back up before she entered and holding it up with one hand.

"Is this good, master?", asked Maka, handing her owner the bottle.

"Yes, very good", said Dr. Evans, taking a large gulp from the bottle. Maka wondered how drunk her owner was. What would he do to her? He put the bottle back down and closed it again, looking a bit for the cap, which he had dropped on the floor. He apparently wasn't drunk enough to be unable to decide to stop drinking. Then he resumed pacing back and forth.

"Disrobe completely", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, pulling her dress over her head, folding it and putting it down on the floor. Dr. Evans circled Maka several times before he slapped her on her recently whipped back, causing Maka to wince in pain. Maka wondered what had displeased him. He continued circling her, obviously thinking about something. Maka hoped he would not violate her, but the odds weren't good. Was there something she could do to improve the odds?

"Is there anything you want, master?", asked Maka. Her owner replied with a slap across her face. There was nothing she could do, except to wait and see what would happen. She felt vulnerable, knowing that she might get raped. How did Samantha deal with this every single day? Maybe she just didn't have a choice, like Maka. Maybe Samantha was simply used to being the toy of a man old enough to be her grandfather. But was it even possible to get used to something like that? Probably not. Dr. Evans sat down on his bed and looked at Maka.

"Turn around", orderd Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and turned around.

"A full circle", said Dr. Evans when Maka stopped with her back facing him.


	82. Bad psychology

Dr. Evans lied down on his bed and stared at the ceiling. Maka wondered what he would do next. He turned to his side, looking in the direction of the window. He reached for the bottle, and drank once again. Maybe he'd eventually be to drunk to do anything with Maka. Maybe he'd get so drunk that he wouldn't be able to remember anything, then she could disobey him without having to fear consequences. But how drunk would he have to be in order for that to happen? She had seen some people get so drunk that they forgot about what happened, mainly on Beer day. But they all seemed to be unable to talk or walk right due to their intoxication. Dr. Evans didn't even seem that drunk. Maka wondered how much alcohol was in her owner's wine and his whiskey. She knew for a fact that whiskey contained a lot of alcohol. But how much alcohol did wine contain? Maybe she could sneak a taste sometime. If she did it with an opened bottle, nobody would know about her drinking. Maybe Jonathan would steal some from Louis K. if she asked really nice. He would not really risk anything, since Louis K. was currently on the way to Europe, of which Maka still didn't know where it was.

"Bring the bottle back down", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, grabbing the bottle. She picked up the cap on the floor and went downstairs with the bottle. Maybe she should not come back up, but instead simply go to bed. But then she remembered the whipping that such behavior was sure to earn her, if not something worse. So she went back upstairs to her owner's bedroom after she had placed the bottle back on the wine rack. When she entered the room, she found that her owner had put on his pyjama top. Maka went to the same position she was standing in before her owner send her to put the whiskey away.

"Open the window", ordered her owner.

"Yes, master", said Maka and opened the window. Immediately, a cool breeze of air blew into the room, causing every hair of her body to stand up. She went back to her place, still awaiting her owner's orders, but the only one she hoped for was the one to leave him alone and to retire for the evening. The room was starting to cool down. Maka started to shake a little in the cold air. Her owner, who had apparently put on his pyjama pants under his bed sheet, threw his pants on the floor, before wrapping himself thightly in his blanket. Maka went and picked up the pants and but them on the clothes hanger. Her owner got of his bed again, went to the door and turned of the light, which made Maka wonder why he didn't just make her do it. After he went back into his bed, he turned of the light on his nightstand, turning the room completely dark.

Standing there in the darkness, Maka wondered what she should do now. Should she search for her dress and leave, since her owner man apparently trying to get some sleep? Or would that get her into trouble?

"Master, what should I do?", asked Maka.

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, with a sight of relief. She searched for her dress. It took her a bit to find it in the darkness, but she eventually found it and put it back on. Right when she left the room, Samantha left the room of Dr. Evans' father. Samantha quickly went over to Maka.

"How was it?", asked Samantha.

"Bizarre", said Maka.

"How so?", asked Samantha.

"He just looked at me, drank a bit of alcohol and went to sleep", explained Maka.

"You don't have to be ashamed of yourself and it helps to talk about it", said Samantha.

"He didn't use me", said Maka, "If that's what you mean?".

"There's no use denying it", said Samantha, "I only want to help". In that moment, they heard Dr. Evans turning around in his bed.

"We should get downstairs", whispered Samantha, "If we wake one of them up, we'll get another whipping". Maka nodded in agreement and went downstairs with Samantha, who then excused herself to take a shower. Maka went into her quarter and lied down in her bed. That's when she wondered where Samantha would sleep. Maka's quarter only contained one bed, and there were any other similar rooms. It didn't seem as if Samantha would sleep in one of the guest rooms, either. So where would Samantha sleep? A few minutes later, Maka was about to fall asleep, Samantha entered the room, turned on the light, undressed and lied down in Maka's bed, pushing Maka over to the other side.

"Stop it", complained Maka.

"Where else am I supposed to sleep?", asked Samantha, "on the floor?".

"That's actually a good idea", said Maka.

"How about we ask your master about it", suggested Samantha. Maka wondered how her owner would react if he was woken up over this dispute. They would probably both get whipped.

"I call your bluff", said Maka, pushing Samantha lightly from the bed. Samantha got up and left the room. Was she actually going to carry out her threat? Remembering her whipped back, Maka decided that she would rather share her bed with Samantha than to risk another whipping, so she went after Samantha.

"Wait, I'll share my bed with you, just don't wake Dr. Evans up", said Maka to Samantha, who was already on the staircase.

"Good", said Samantha, turning around and went back to bed. Maka wanted to take this chance to ask an interesting question.

"Have you ever thought about running away?", whispered Maka, after she got into bed.

"Sometimes I dream of it", said Samantha, "But I'm to afraid to try something".

"Why?", asked Maka.

"Do you know how long crucifixion takes?", asked Samantha.

"No", said Maka.

"Two to three days", said Samantha, turning away, "Goodnight".

"Goodnight", said Maka, seeing that Samantha just wanted to sleep.


	83. Coffee

The next morning, Maka awoke hungry. She climbed over Samantha and turned on the light. Looking at the alarm clock, she saw that it was ten past seven. Her owner wanted his breakfast ten minutes ago. Why did she forget to set the alarm clock? Now she would get another whipping, or worse. Maybe she could blame it on Samantha. But how? She would tell that Samantha had unset the alarm clock.

When she entered the dining room, she found it empty. Then she remembered that her owner had specified eight o'clock on weekends. So it would be completely unnecessary to get Samantha into trouble. Now Maka felt bad about planning to blame Samantha. Seeing that she still had fifty minutes until her owner wanted breakfast, she decided to check the mail. There was a large, brown envelope in the mail, bulged from it's contest. Maka wondered what was inside. She wanted to open it, but then she remembered what would happen to her if she did that. She carried the mail inside.

"Why isn't breakfast ready?", asked Dr. Evans' father, who was seated at the table of the dining room. She had to think of something, and fast.

"I'm sorry, old master, but your son usually eats breakfast at eight on weekends", explained Maka, "but I can prepare something right now if you wish".

"An omelet", ordered Dr. Evans' father. Maka went into the kitchen and started preparing the omelet. She wondered why Samantha was still sleeping. She put the omelet on a plate and brought it to Dr. Evans' father, who immediately started eating.

"Do you want anything else, old master?", asked Maka.

"A cup of coffee", ordered Dr. Evans' father.

"I'm sorry, old master", said Maka, "I don't know how to prepare coffee".

"Let Samantha show you", said Dr. Evan's father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka, walking towards her quarter.

"Where are you going?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Samantha's still asleep, old master", said Maka.

"Tell her she won't get any breakfast today", ordered Dr. Evans' father. Maka then went to her quarter, where Samantha was still sleeping. So Maka grabbed her and shook her awake.

"What is?", replied Samantha, sleepily.

"Your master wants me to tell you that you won't get any breakfast today", said Maka, "You are also to show me how to make coffee".

"What time is it?", asked Samantha.

"Half past seven", answered Maka, Samantha looked shocked, got up and got dressed. Then she walked into the dining room.

"I'm sorry, master", said Samantha.

"You still don't get any breakfast, now shut up before I decide to give you a whipping", said Dr. Evans' father. Samantha went into the kitchen and Maka followed. Then Samantha went to that one machine Maka never used. She then looked into the cupboards until she found a black can and brown triangular paper bag. She folded the bag and inserted it into the machine, after which she put a few spoonfull a black powder, which was in the black can. Then she poured some water into another compartment of the machine. She pressed a button on the machine and short time later a black liquid flowed into the machines carafe. Maka had watched this process in fascination, now she knew what to do if someone asked for coffee. Then she prepared her owners breakfast and served it right as he came downstairs.

"Morning father", said Dr. Evans, "You're up early".

"Morning Soul", said Dr. Evans' father. Dr. Evans looked at the large, brown envelope.

"That looks suspicious", said Dr. Evans.

"You're afraid it's a letter bomb?", asked his father.

"Kinda", said Dr. Evans, turning the envelope in his hands, "No return address".

"Maybe you should just throw it away", said his father.

"I wish I had a bodyguard", said Dr. Evans. Taking a deep breath, he opened the envelope. Nothing happened.

"What is it?", asked his father.

"Just some court documents", said Dr. Evans, "Simon must have forgotten to put a return address on it".

"Who's that?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"A clerk at the courthouse", explained Dr. Evans, reading over the documents while already on his way out of the door. He came back a few minutes later and resumed eating his breakfast and started reading the newspaper.

"Seems like West Wyoming is running into massive logistical problems", said Dr. Evans' father. The words "West Wyoming" caught Maka's attention. She began listening intensively.

"Really, how?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Apparently, their food supply is running out because of warlords attacking their farms", said Dr. Evans' father, "According to this military analyst, if the new Confederates start an offensive now, West Wyoming will be on the defense".

"I made a bet with my neighbour that West Wyoming would win", said Dr. Evans.

"What are the stakes?", asked his father."

"A magazine subscription", said Dr Evans.

"Looks like you'll lose that bet", said his father.

"What's so interesting about the war in West Wyoming?", asked Samantha, who had apparently noticed Maka's interest.

"I was born in West Wyoming", said Maka.

"How is life in West Wyoming?", asked Samantha.

"Pretty nice, especially during the holidays", said Maka.

"What kind of holidays do the people of West Wyoming celebrate?", asked Samantha.

"The next holiday would be the Presidents birthday", said Maka, "But it seems like I'm going to miss that".

"Isn't that guy still alive?", asked Samantha.

"Yes", said Maka.

"Where I come from it's a big no-no to make your birthday a national holiday while you're still alive", said Samantha.

"Then how can the people properly celebrate their leader's birthday?", asked Samantha.

"They don't", said Samantha.

"That's very disrespectful", said Maka.

"Samantha", called Dr. Evans' father. Samantha immediately went into the dining room. Maka decided to follow.

"Yes, master?", asked Samantha.

"Clean the dishes", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, young master", said Samantha. Maka liked this, because cleaning the dishes was usually her responsibility. Maka decided to help Samantha with the dishes.


	84. Witch

After they had finished the dishes, they went into the dining room, to see if their owners needed anything, only to find them still reading the newspaper.

"This is interesting", said Dr. Evans' father, "Slave trader attacked by witch".

"Proceed", said Dr. Evans.

"New Nipton", read Dr. Evans' father, "Brutal attack on slave trading company shocks investigators, suspicion of witch involvement", he made a short break, "The headquarter of the slave trading company Morcerf and Morrel had been broken into in the night from Thursday to Friday. The attack took place around midnight. The attacker entered the compound from the east, slaughtering her way trough the guards, searching through the archive and fleeing once reinforcement arrived. The attacker also opened every cell in the cell tract, presumably to cause a distraction. Of the hundred slaves in storage, thirty tried to escape. Of these thirty, five were recaptured on site. Of the remaining twenty five runaways, twenty had been recaptured and executed at time of writing". Dr Evans father hit the side of his cup with a spoon and Samantha refilled the cup.

"Eyewitnesses describe the attacker as a tall slender female figure. A cooperative slave described her appearance under torture as 'an average face, framed by two strands of hair, which were braided into one below her chin'. Her physical build had been described as average. According to a surviving guard she fought mainly with tentacles, extremely long, as wide as an arm but extremely thin. She apparently referred to these tentacles as 'vector arrows', since all witnesses agree that she shouted the name of the tentacles before using them, investigators conclude that she is a witch. She also utilized a spell called 'vector plate', which launched a guard at a wall with lethal force. She has been seen arriving and leaving the site flying on a broomstick, she has been injured on her escape.

The motives of the attacker remain unclear, according to co-founder and CEO, Albert Mondengo de Morcerf, the only things unaccounted for were a list of their customers and several of the slaves the witch freed. Police officers urge any customers of Morcerf and Morrel to exercise caution. However, since all their customers are either slave markets or large farms, mines and fuel farms, civilian slave owners are advised not to worry. Direct customers of Morcerf and Morrel are advised to increase security. According to Dr. Blackstar, first district attorney of New Death City and supreme witch hunter, these potential targets are already being guarded by witch hunters. At time of writing, three different customers have confirmed that their assets are being guarded by witch hunters. High ranking employees of these places are advised to avoid dark alleyways and going out at night, suppliers of Morcerf and Morrel, such as Dr. Eisenberg, are also advised to take precautions.

Dr. Blackstar asks the civilian population to keep their eyes and ears open and to report any suspicious activity to the witch hunters or the police. He also stresses several sings that can be used to recognize witches. Witches often use mantras to tame their extreme blood lust, to avoid immediately slaughtering everyone around them. He also stresses that most witches are extremely combat efficient, which is why no civilian should approach or attempt to subdue a witch. Also, witches can't drown, since water repels them. They don't only float on water, they lie on it without getting wet. Due to the water's aversion to witches, witches are almost always unwashed and smell bad, since they require a special potion to clean themselves. Some witches are reported to posses the ability to turn into animals, therefore caution is advised if one observes unusual behavior in animals, such as e.g. frogs climbing buildings. Most witches posses familiars, which, as Dr. Blackstar points out, are only rarely cats, civilians are advised to look out for unusual pets, such as giant tadpoles".

"Giant tadpoles?", interrupted Dr Evans.

"Yes, giant tadpoles", said his father before he continued reading, "The most reliable way to identify a witch is to see them casting a spell, since they have to shout out the name of the name of the spell aloud. Given the nature of this witch's spells, civilians are advised to take cover immediately if they hear a spell being cast. The recommendation is, that if 'vector arrow' is being cast to break the line of sight, since the tentacles seem to be unable to curve, going only in a straight line. Should one get hit by such a tentacle, one is to seek medical attention immediately. The wounds might not look to severe, since the flat nature of the tentacles causes only minimal bleeding on penetration, but have been observed to cause severe internal bleeding and sever bones with ease. Should 'vector plate' be cast, however, one should jump into the air immediately, since the witness reports indicate that ground contact is necessary for the spell to take effect.

When asked how the company will be affected financially, Maximilian Morrel, co-founder and head of accounting, said that the Morcerf and Morrel is still well of financially. He explains this partly due to the fact that the booming economy requires a constant supply of slaves. The wars in Wyoming, West Virginia, Michigan and Minnesota also provide this steady supply. Therefore the current economical situation is very good for slave traders. Even thought they will still end up with a quarterly loss, since their insurance doesn't cover executed slaves. When asked why they executed the runaways, despite the economic disadvantage, Maximilian Morrel stated that they had to set a clear example. He also stated that the five who were recaptured on site would not be executed but be punished in a non-lethal way instead, the severity of the punishment depending on the distance to their cell when they were found".

"Does the article tell anything else that's interesting?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka had been quietly listening to the entire article, she wished she could read fluently.

"Not really, the rest is all Maximilian Morrel explaining how they keep the slaves in line", said Dr. Evans' father.


	85. Samantha's plans

"You think they'll find the witch soon?", asked Dr. Evans.

"If she's smart, she should be able to escape", said his father, "She can fly, after all".

"But what do you think was she looking for in the first place?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She looked through their books", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Wonder what exactly she was looking for", said Dr. Evans.

"We'll probably never know", said his father, taking a large sip of his coffee, "an interesting question would be where she came from".

"I'll ask Dr. Blackstar if he knows anything the next time I'll see him", said Dr. Evans.

"I'll take a walk around town", said his father, "Could I borrow Maka for a while?".

"If you want her to show you around town, she'd be a terrible choice", said Dr. Evans.

"Why?", asked his father.

"I bought her a few weeks ago. She's never seen this city before then", said Dr. Evans, "and she only knows a few shops around town".

"I'll suppose I'll just grab a book", said his father.

"I can show you the town later", said Dr. Evans, getting up from the table and leaving the room. His father left the room, too. Maka went into the kitchen to eat something. Samantha was watching her, clearly trying to decide whether she should eat something despise the fact that her owner had forbidden her from eating breakfast today.

"Do you think I would get away with eating something?", asked Samantha.

"I don't know", said Maka.

"Could be the look-out while I eat something?", asked Samantha.

"Yes", said Maka. After she had finished eating, she went into the dining room and pretended to clean the table, so that she could warn Samantha when someone walked into the kitchen.

"Samantha", yelled Dr. Evans' father. Samantha immediately ran to her owner. Maka doubted she had enough time to eat. Maka actually cleaned the table and went on to clean the counters in the kitchen. Maka wondered what Samantha would have to do. Would Dr. Evans' father use her again? But this early in the morning? It was still possible, even thought that would indicate Dr. Evans' father to be very active for his age. Thinking about Samantha, it occurred to Maka that Samantha, while she didn't have the guts to actually put any of her escape plans into action, she probably gave the issue appropriate thought. Maybe she had some good ideas. Maka would have to get her to talk about her escape plans. But what if Samantha wouldn't cooperate. No, even Samantha herself was to afraid to do anything about her predicament, she would probably be willing to help another captive escapes. Once she found an opportunity to talk to Samantha without a risk of any of their owners catching them, she would discuss escape plans with Samantha.

The next task Maka had to do was to mow the lawn. Dr. Evans' father told Samantha to help Maka mow the lawn, but given that there was only one scythe, a rather rusty one, which was half buried in her owner's junk room, it would impossible for her and Maka to work together. Incidentally, Jonathan was sitting in Louis K.'s garden at this point, enjoying the rays of the sun.

"Good afternoon", said Jonathan.

"Hello, Jonathan", said Maka.

"Who's that?", asked Jonathan, pointing at Samantha.

"That's Samantha, she is the slave of my master's father", said Maka.

"Hello Samantha", said Jonathan, "Nice to meet you".

"Thanks", said Samantha, "It's nice to meet you, too".

"Anyway, I should be getting back to work", said Jonathan and went inside his owner's house.

"Who was that?", asked Samantha.

"Jonathan, Louis K.'s slave", said Maka.

"I hope he doesn't get into trouble", said Samantha.

"Thing is, Louis K is on a business trip and won't be back for another six months or so", said Maka.

"He's so lucky", said Samantha.

"Say, what duties do you have to do at your master's house?", asked Maka.

"I only have to pleasure him", said Samantha, "Sometimes I have to accompany him to social events".

"What kind of social events?", asked Maka.

"The kind where you bring a woman along, but not your wife", said Samantha.

"I understand", said Maka, making sure they were unobserved, "say, you've figured out a way to run away".

"Yes", whispered Samantha nervously, "but I'm to afraid to try it".

"If you tell me your plans, they won't go to waste", said Maka.

"Do you realize that your carelessness could get us both killed?", asked Samantha.

"I'm sorry", said Maka as she finished mowing the lawn, "But we appear to be quite unobserved".

"Yeah, but just stop talking about running away", said Samantha, "it's too dangerous".

"But isn't it worth the risk?", asked Maka, "to be free again".

"I don't know, I really don't want to risk dying in agony", said Samantha.

"You aren't really the bravest, aren't you?" asked Maka.

"If you're so brave, then why are you still here?", asked Samantha, "Why didn't you run the moment your master first turned his back on you?".

"I'm not suicidal", said Maka, "running away needs to be carefully planned".

"How are you going to get rid of your collar?", asked Samantha, "if you don't get it of everyone will recognize you as a runaway".

"I'll figure something out", said Maka.

"And even if you get it off, where are you going to run?", asked Samantha.

"West Wyoming", said Maka.

"I think that is a bit too close", said Samantha.

"West Wyoming is safe" said Maka.

"Then why are you here?", asked Samantha.

"I believe Europe would be safe", said Jonathan, who had left his owner's house again.

"And where is this 'Europe'?", asked Samantha.

"If you go east, you will eventually come to a wide sea", said Jonathan, "If you travel over this sea, you will arrive in Europe".

"How long does that take?", asked Maka, wondering if she could lay low in Europe until they stopped searching for her.

"My master says that he can get there in roughly a month", said Jonathan.

"Get back to work!", yelled Dr. Evans. Maka put the scythe away and dug out a rake and raked all the grass together.


	86. The book

The rest of the morning seemed to go by rather uneventfully. Samantha wouldn't talk to Maka about escape plans, because she was to afraid. But what could Samantha have figured out, anyway? Not much, after all, Samantha was to scared to try anything. But maybe Samantha's fear was justified. How many runaway slaves were recaptured? But how would she find that out? Would knowing the odds even be that useful? Maybe a lot of runaway slaves ran away without proper preparation, which was certainly the case with the ones that witch freed from Morcerf and Morrel. Who was that witch? The description of her powers rang a bell. Then it hit Maka, a book that fell from the bookshelf, it hit her right on the head. Maka cursed her bad luck, this would hurt some time. The first thing Maka noticed when she looked at the book was its single eye, which eyed her menacingly. Intrigued, she opened the book. The pages were quite yellowed, covered in indecipherable letters, illustrations showing geometric patterns and strange creatures she had never seen before. Maka wondered what she should do with the book. The easiest solution would be to put it back. But maybe the book was dangerous. While Maka didn't know how a book could pose a threat, she knew that the president of West Wyoming, Charles Anderson Ligua, had ordered the destruction of several books. Maka always thought the information in the book were dangerous, but she had never seen a book with an eye before.

Maka decided to show the book to her owner. But while she was looking for him, she found Samantha in the kitchen.

"I found this book", said Maka, holding up the book.

"What's so special about it?", asked Samantha. Maka turned the book around, so that the eye looked at Samantha.

"Burn it!", yelled Samantha, "it's evil".

"Why?", asked Maka.

"Because it's evil", said Samantha.

"Why is it evil?", asked Maka.

"Give it to me, so that I can destroy it", said Samantha, grasping for the book.

"No, first tell me why it's evil", said Maka, clutching the book.

"When I was still a little girl, my mother told me a story", said Samantha, "It's the story of an evil being, a being whose goal is the death of every living thing. Nobody knows why it wants to end all life, some says it's afraid and wants to feel safe. Other say it's driven by pure hate for everything, then there are some who claim it's actually trying to do good, but in order to achieve it's noble goal, everything else must die. In a foreign land, a man set out to do its bidding. It wanted to help the man, so it wrote down its knowledge in a book. But it couldn't just use an ordinary book, for an ordinary book couldn't possibly hold such knowledge of the arcane, of black magic so evil that not even witches were willing to cast it. So the servant collected ingredients for his dark master. He went out into the world and abducted children, for only the souls of the innocent are pure enough to power such an evil artifact. Once he had the children, he brought them to his dark master. It then devoured the children and fashioned the pages out of their skin and wrote in their blood. It wrote the terrible secrets that it wanted to share with its servant, so that he may go out into the world and do its bidding. The dark master finished the book by giving it an eye, so that the tormented souls trapped within could see the world to remember their former life. They had been driven insane by torture, but by giving them means to remember their former life, he made it impossible for them to forget.

Then the servant went out into the world, he wandered the lands, looking for a good place to start doing his master's work, walking by day, studying the book by night. By the time he had finished the book, he was in the town Wolnzach. He decided to start there and began his work with great enthusiasm. He slew young and old alike. Thanks to the knowledge provided by his master, nobody could stop him. After he had killed the people, he turned their bodies into monsters, to kill the living at his command. Eventually he didn't have to kill anybody himself anymore. His monsters just slaughtered people and brought him the corpses, so that he could make more monsters. He seemed unstoppable, until a hero got the idea of slitting his throat while he slept. Nobody believed it would work, the people didn't know of the dark master, so they thought the servant was some kind of powerful monster, twisted into human form. Since his monsters couldn't be killed by slitting their throats, nobody except the hero thought that slitting the servants throat would work. But the hero tried it anyway, succeeded and stole the book. With the servant dead, the monsters didn't know what to do anymore, so they began aimlessly wandering the countryside, slaughtering everybody they met, but there was nobody to replace the fallen monsters or to nurse the wounded ones back to health, so the monsters were defeated a few years later.

But nobody knew what happened to the book, and after some time everybody presumed it had been destroyed. But they feared that the dark master could simply make a new one, once he found another willing servant. They say that the dark master is still out there, because no one has ever seen him. They knew of him only from his servant's journal. Nobody knows what the dark master looks like, for if you see him, you will only walk away if you are loyal to his cause. They say that to this day he is still out there, looking for children, so that he can harvest their souls and bodies in order to make another book, to trap them in eternal madness and torment".


	87. Discussion about the book

"Let me guess, if you don't behave, the dark master will take you", said Maka.

"Yeah, that's how the story ends", said Samantha, "did your mother tell you the same story?".

"No, my mother died when I was born", said Maka, "But what should we do with the book now?".

"Burn it!", demanded Samantha.

"But if it really holds such power...", said Maka.

"No, burn it!", demanded Samantha, "don't be fooled by the promise of power".

"We could use it for good", said Maka.

"Power corrupts", said Samantha, "and you can't read it, anyway".

"What are you two talking about?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"About this book", said Maka in a panic, realizing to late that she should have told a lie. Judging by Samantha's expression, she thought the same.

"Give me the book", ordered Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka reluctantly. He opened the book and looked at different pages.

"You really do believe anything", said Dr. Evans' father, still flipping through the book absentmindedly. Maka feared the power of the book might have fallen into the wrong hands. She should have burned it when she had the chance. Then Dr. Evans entered the room.

"You wouldn't believe what the slaves found", said his father, holding up the book.

"The eyed book", said Dr. Evans, "I've been looking forever for that. Who of you two found it?" Maka didn't know whether she should take credit for finding the book or not. Would he punish her, or would he reward her? What did he want to do with the book anyway.

"I did master, I was cleaning the living room when I found it", said Maka, she would have to see what would happen with the book, so she could steal it.

"You know, they actually believe it to be an ancient artifact", said Dr. Evans' father, right before he and his son burst into laughter.

"Where did you get it anyway?", asked Dr. Evans' father, after he had stopped laughing.

"I got it for my birthday from Louis K", said Dr. Evans, "He brought it back from one of his trips to Europe".

"You pick interesting friends", said his father.

"Well, you can't choose your neighbors", said Dr. Evans.

"I wonder where he found this gimmick, thought", said his father.

"He said he found it in a town that was once Wolnzach", said Dr. Evans.

"Wolnzach, I heard that name before", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Maybe the people at the historical society know about it", said Dr. Evans.

"That club you spend your Sundays at?", asked his father.

"Yes, would you perhaps like to come, too?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Certainly, I always liked history", said Dr. Evans' father. Dr. Evans looked at Maka, who was just standing there, listening to him and his father talking.

"Get back to work, Maka", ordered Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry master", said Maka, "I'll get back to work now". She was glad he didn't slap her or whip her. While she was once again cleaning the living room, she thought about where Louis K supposedly found the book. The same place as in the story. Was this a coincidence, or was the story actually true. No, it couldn't be true. It was just a story, meant to scare children. Her father had told her a number of these stories when she was little, but she soon found that the monsters described in these stories did not exist. They only served to frighten young children into behaving. But she couldn't shake the feeling that the story Samatha had told was true. It was most certainly true. The book existed, the town existed. Only the dark master and his servant remained unaccounted for.

But maybe the story was not real. Maybe Louis K lied about where he found the book. Maybe the people of Wolznach knew about the legend and faked the book to scare people. But her owner had said that the town was once called Wolnzach, so it had probably been destroyed. So if the story is true, there should be nothing but ruins left of Wolnzach. Then she remembered how her owner and his father had laughed about the notion of the story being true. Maybe they were right. Looking around, she saw that Samantha was helping her clean the living room.

"Say, do you think the story is true, or not?", asked Maka.

"If it was false, then why is does the book exist?", said Samantha.

"Our masters seem to believe it to be some sort of faux artifact", said Maka.

"But the place this Louis K found the book in", said Samantha, "it matches the legend".

"Maybe someone created the book and hid it there because of the legend", suggested Maka.

"Who would go to so much trouble for a simple prank?", asked Samantha.

"Maybe the people of Wolnzach liked the legend and counterfeited this book", suggested Maka.

"I don't think that's likely", said Samantha.

"What do you think we should do about the book?", asked Maka.

"I don't know", said Samantha, "we're the only ones who seem to take it seriously".

"Do you think we should destroy it?", asked Maka.

"I don't know. You said you could read somewhat?", asked Samantha.

"I recognize a few letters, sometimes I can even figure out the meaning of the text", said Maka.

"Did you look inside? Did you recognize any of the letters?", asked Samantha.

"No, it seemed to be written in a completely unfamiliar language", said Maka.

"Maybe our masters don't understand the writing as well", said Samantha.

"Maybe we should just ask", suggested Maka.

"You try that", said Samatha. Just as luck would have it, her owner and his father entered the room at this moment.

"Master, may I ask you a question?", asked Maka.

"Fine", said Dr. Evans.

"What's written in that book with the eye on it?", asked Maka.

"Just nonsensical scribbling", said Dr. Evans, "get back to work".

"Thank you, master", said Maka as she went back to work.


	88. Samantha's cooking

While Maka was still cleaning the living room, Dr. Evans' father started to play the piano. He played a slow, melancholic melody. She couldn't decide who played better, Dr. Evans or his father. Then she thought once again about the book. What could be done about it? The real question was, who else knew it was here and was therefore after it? The best possible case would be that this book actually is just a book, or that everybody thinks it is just a book. But what should she do in case somebody was trying to steal it. Maybe she could convince her owner to lock it into his safe. But how could she convince to waste valuable safe space on what he called a gimmick? She would have to convince him that the book was dangerous. But if she told him about the power that the book held, maybe he would use it to take over the world. Maybe he could read it. He knew more than one language, for example that language Dr. Eisenberg spoke on occasion. Maybe the book was written in Dr. Eisenberg's language. But he said that the books content just contained nonsensical scribbling. Maybe he was lying. But what if he was right about this book being a counterfeit and the story Samantha told was also correct, then the real book was around somewhere, unless it had been destroyed. But couldn't this dark master make more books. Maybe there was nothing anyone could do against the dark master, maybe it was only a question of time until he made a comeback and destroyed the world.

"Maka, light the fireplace", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She fetched some wood from the garden and some old newspaper to use as kindling. Then she got two sticks and rubbed them together, in order to build up enough heat to light the fire.

"Why is this taking so long?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, "I'm working as hard as I can".

"Why aren't you using matches?", asked Dr. Evans, "Or a lighter?".

"What are matches?", asked Maka.

"Small sticks that catch fire if you rub them against a rough surface", said Dr. Evans, "There are some in the kitchen".

"Thank you master", said Maka before she went into the kitchen to look for the matches. After some searching she found a box, made of cardboard, with a picture of a small stick with some red stuff on the end on it. Maka took the box and brought it to the fireplace. She opened it and took out one of the sticks. She rubbed the match against a rough surface. Nothing happened. Then she tried rubbing the red stuff against a surface. The match caught fire. When she threw the match into the fireplace, the fireplace's fire was lit.

"Isn't it a little early to light a fire?", asks Dr. Evans' father.

"I just want to", said Dr. Evans, "and the weather looks like it will get very nasty". Looking out of the window, one could see a thickly overcast sky, it was probably going to rain soon. Checking the time, Maka determined that she should start preparing lunch. She went into the kitchen to prepare lunch, and Samantha followed. Did Samantha want to help? Maka began to chop carrots for a soup.

"You could make yourself useful by cutting the onions", said Maka. Samantha picked up a knife and started to cut the onions. After about two seconds she cursed about how she cut her finger. Maka continued to slice the vegetables, then to peel the potatoes. When she was done, Samantha was still slicing the first onion, so Maka took over. After all the vegetables were properly chopped, Maka put the ingredients in a pot and started to cook them at a low temperature. Seeing as Samantha was there to watch the pots boiling, Maka went to clean the living room. When she came back to check on the soup, she found that Samantha managed to let it boil over and was unable to contain the situation. Maka quickly turned the heat down. Now there was a mess to clean up.

"You're the worst cook I've ever seen", said Maka, "have you never been taught anything".

"I'm sorry", said Samantha sheepishly. Maka seriously wondered how it could be that Samantha couldn't cook. She decided to test the soup out of fear that Samantha had screwed it up. Luckily the soup was still good, so neither Maka or Samantha would get in trouble. In order to ensure the safety of the soup, Maka removed Samantha from the kitchen.

"Samantha, go and help Maka with the lunch!", shouted Dr. Evans' father. To Maka's horror, Samantha reentered the kitchen.

"Shut up and don't touch anything", said Maka. Samatha remained silent. How was it possible that Samatha couldn't cook? Maybe Dr. Evans' father had other slaves to take care of the cooking, so that Samantha's duties were very limited. As Maka stirred the soup, she once again thought about the book. Seeing as destroying it would get her into massive trouble and that nobody seemed to be able to use it, she concluded that no immediate action had to be taken. Therefore Maka began to plot her escape once more. Maybe she could use that dark master as a distraction. She was willing to bring down death and destruction to cover her tail. This made her a much worse person than her owner. For the first time, Maka felt like she deserved her fate. But that was nonsense. Maka would never actually do something that horrible to reach her goals, no matter what they might were. The ends do not sanctify the means. Unless the goal was the safety or glory of West Wyoming. But Maka doubted using uncontrollable black magic would benefit West Wyoming in the long run. She actually thought that would hurt every government in the area. Also she didn't know where the dark master was located, or if he actually existed in the first place, so using him would be a tad problematic to impossible. Then Maka served the soup and her owner and his father began to eat it.


	89. Politics

"This soup is good", said Dr. Evans' father, "and it looks like it's hair-free this time".

"Well, Maka seems to have learned her lesson", said Dr. Evans.

"You agree to the marriage?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, father", said Dr. Evans.

"Good, the Albarns will like to hear that", said Dr Evans' father.

"Maka, bring the whiskey", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Whiskey, at noon?", asked his father disapprovingly.

"Yes, master", said Maka, before she went into the basement and fetched a bottle of whiskey. She poured two shots and served them.

"No thank you, I don't drink before four o'clock", said Dr. Evans' father. Dr. Evans had already dunked his shot and simply took the shot that his father had refused. Maka poured another shot, which her owner promptly drank.

"Take it easy", said Dr. Evans' father, "you don't want to get drunk this early".

"I guess you're right", said Dr. Evans, pushing his shot glass away, "Maka, bring the bottle back down".

"Yes, master", said Maka as she took the bottle down.

"...I understand that it's hard to settle down, but it's necessary, you understand", said Dr. Evans' father, "and it's not like you have to give up the vices that make living fun".

"I know", said Dr. Evans, slightly annoyed.

"Look at me, for example, I still get to enjoy the nice things about human biology", said Dr. Evans' father, pointing at Samantha, "and I've been married for decades now".

"I know", said Dr. Evans, slightly annoyed.

"Just make a couple of heirs with your future wife", said Dr. Evans' father, "preserve the family name".

"I know", said Dr. Evans, slightly annoyed.

"You'll also have to move to a larger house", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka wondered what would happen if Dr. Evans moved to larger house. A larger house would mean more work for her, unless her owner purchased additional slaves.

"I know", said Dr. Evans, slightly annoyed.

"I'm annoying you, aren't I?", asked his father, "I know you're a little overwhelmed by all of this, but believe me, so was I my father told me I would marry your mother. But don't worry, you will mostly be able to keep going the way you used to".

"I know", said Dr. Evans, slightly annoyed, "How is Wes doing?".

"He's on a business trip in northern Michigan", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Isn't that where this slave revolt is going on?", asked Dr. Evans.

"He hired himself a large group of bodyguards, so he should be alright", said Dr. Evans' father.

"What is he doing up there, anyway?", asked Dr. Evans.

"He's negotiating a contract with the Jacobson family", said Dr. Evans' father, "But speaking of the slave revolt, how do you think it's going to end?".

"Well, considering that in all of human history, there was only one successful slave revolt, I'd guess they're going to fail", said Dr. Evans.

"What was different about the one that succeeded?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"The slaves outnumbered the free people by a factor of ten to one", said Dr. Evans.

"Wait, what about that which happened in Dakota?", asked Dr. Evans' father, "The slaves were vastly outnumbered, and not even all of them participated".

"Those were military slaves", explained Dr. Evans.

"Military slaves?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, slaves used as soldiers", said Dr. Evans, "There's a vast difference between these guys and normal slaves, they are allowed to carry weapons, are trained in their use and they get paid. Therefore what happened in Dakota was not a slave revolt".

"Then what was it?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"A military coup", said Dr. Evans.

"Nice, but say, how many slaves are there in New Nevada?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"About twenty five percent of the population are slaves", said Dr. Evans.

"Seems like we ain't at risk", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka thought that such a revolt would maybe make it easier for her to slip away unnoticed. But if a revolt was to be staged, who would lead the revolt? It would have to be someone who knew how to use weapons, and how to navigate the terrain. Maka couldn't really do it herself, because she didn't know how to operate a firearm nor did she know a lot about this country. But she didn't know anyone who was qualified for the job. Therefore, staging a revolt would not work, due to lack of competent leadership.

"Who are going to vote for in the election?", asked Dr. Evans' father. Maka wondered what an 'election' was.

"I don't know yet, I think Dr. Dvorak's political plans are the most beneficial", said Dr. Evans.

"Dr. Necis also has some nice ideas", said Dr. Evans' father.

"He's a total psychopath. He can't go two days without beating one of his slaves to death", said Dr. Evans, "if Puer gets elected, I'll flee the country".

"What kind of name is 'Puer Necis', anyway?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"It's Latin", said Dr. Evans.

"Why hasn't that occurred to me", said Dr. Evans' father, "'Child of death', funny name".

"But say, isn't the age to even be eligible for presidency fifty?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, he looks suprisingly young for a fifty year old", said Dr. Evans' father.

"He's probably older than fifty, if he was fifty, he'd be the youngest president ever", said Dr. Evans.

"I would love to know the secret of his youth", said Dr. Evans' father, "Makes me wish that book was real, a tome of evil would probably contain the secret to eternal youth".

"Probably, but chances are you'd have to bathe in the blood of a highborn virgin regularly", said Dr. Evans.

"The big trouble would be to get enough high born virgins", said Dr. Evans' father, "They don't tend to show up on the slave markets regularly".

"But you'd be able to raise an army of monsters, you could just take the highborn virgins", said Dr. Evans.

"You'd probably have to locate this 'dark master' first", said Dr. Evans' father, "so that it can teach you how to read the book".

"But what good does immortality if you spend it serving an omnicidal maniac?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Well, it'd be worthless", said Dr. Evans' father.

"But it's amazing how one sometimes wishes those legends were true", said Dr. Evans, eying Samantha.

"Do you want to try her?", asked Dr. Evans' father, looking at Samantha, having noticed his son's gaze, "You can if you want to, I don't mind at all".

**Dear readers,**

** a reviewer called "Pandamustache" suggested I write more author's notes, so I wrote one.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated**


	90. A resolution

"Why not", said Dr. Evans. Maka was worried, would that mean that his father would rape her? That was what they agreed to yesterday, after all.

"You heard what my son said", said Dr. Evans' father to Samantha, "better do a really good job".

"Yes, master", said Samantha.

"Follow me", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, young master", said Samantha as she followed him upstairs. Maka watched her owner leave the room, wondering what would happen to her. Maka began collecting the dishes, figuring that if she looked busy, Dr. Evans' father would maybe let her finish working instead of amusing himself with her. He didn't follow her into the kitchen. Maka took her time when she cleaned the dishes. After all, avoiding Dr. Evans' father was her strategy. She finished washing the dishes, and dried them very slowly. If her owner would see her doing her work this slowly, she'd get a whipping. She heard someone playing the piano in the living room. She started cleaning the kitchen, she would finish cleaning the living room later.

"Maka!", called Dr. Evan's father. Maka reluctantly went into the living room.

"Yes, old master?", asked Maka.

"Bring me a glass of water", said Dr. Evan's father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka and brought him a glass of water.

"Where are you from?", asked Dr. Evans' father. She was surprised that he wanted to know that.

"West Wyoming, old master", said Maka.

"Reminds me of a story Specter told me", said Dr. Evans' father. Maka didn't know whether she should I attempt to make small talk or if she should get back to work.

"It's the story of how his brother Spirit got banned from a town in West Wyoming", said Dr. Evans' father, "it happened when Spirit was twenty". Maka was not really interested in the story. She picked up a rag and began cleaning the bookshelf. Dr. Evans' father began playing a song on the piano. His music was as good as his son's. Maka enjoyed listening to it. Then she remembered that she needed to avoid him, lest he violates her. But she couldn't really stop cleaning the living room now without arousing suspicion. She tried to be as quiet as possible. Dr. Evans father played a happy tune. He seemed to be rather content. When she moved on to the table, he began playing a slow, solemn tune. Maka noticed that the fire in the fireplace was going out, so she used the fire iron to stir it up a little, since it had indeed started to rain outside, like her owner had predicted. After she had cleaned every non floor surface, Maka went back to cleaning the kitchen.

"Maka, bring me another glass of water", yelled Dr. Evans' father.

"Here's the water you ordered, old master", said Maka as she handed him a new glass of water. He was reading a book. Looking over his shoulder, she saw a sketch of a slave collar on the right side of the page he was currently reading. Maka knew she had to read this book. If it discussed these collars, maybe it would tell how to remove them. But Maka could only read a little. She would have to learn how to read. But how? There probably was nobody who would be willing to teach her to read. The only people whom she was certain that they could read would never devote and energy to teaching her how to read. But there was Vanessa. Vanessa could read, and maybe she would even be willing to teach her how to read. But she met Vanessa far too rarely for that to be feasible. Maybe Ms Nakatsukasa could read. But she didn't meet Ms Nakatsukasa often enough for that to be feasible, either. Maybe Jonathan could read. No, that was extremely unlikely. With nobody to teach her, Maka would have to teach herself. But at least she already knew a lot of letters, roughly half of them. Since it took her two years to learn these, she estimated that it would take another two years to learn the rest of them. Since she could not devote any meaningful amount of time to leaning to read, she would have to plan on needing even more time in order to learn how to read. She decided that she should double her estimate. Seeing that four years was a rather long time, she figured that she would try to figure out another way to find the necessary information, but she would still try and learn to read

Dr. Evans' father put his book away. Maka went up to the bookshelf, pretending to walk past it. She then fetched a rag and started rubbing a spot close to the book. Maka wanted to try and decipher the title. "[?]-[a]-[n]-[u]-[a]-[l]-[o]-[?]-...".

"Haven't you cleaned the bookshelf already?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"I noticed I missed a spot, old master", lied Maka. Dr. Evans' father slapped her across the face with the back of his hand.

"The next time you'll do it right the first time", said Dr Evans' father.

"I'm sorry, old master. Yes, old master", said Maka, rubbing her cheek. She wondered if she could have come up with a better lie. Maybe she should have told that the spot was very hardy and that she needed something stronger than just a rag to clean it up. But if she had told that, Dr. Evans' father would have known that she lied, since she only had the rag and nothing stronger. Maka wondered what the punishment was for slaves who lied. Maybe Samantha knew. Maka asked herself if she even wanted to know.

Dr. Evans came downstairs.

"Why did you slap Maka?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She didn't clean the shelf properly", said his father.

"It looks rather clean", said Dr. Evans.

"Now it is", said his father.

"Why so lenient?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She noticed her mistake herself", said his father, "how did you find Samantha?".

"Great", said Dr. Evans, "I can see why you bought her".

"She's my current favorite", said his father. Maka wondered what would happen to Samantha once she was no longer her owner's favorite.


	91. Medusa

The rest of the afternoon went by rather quietly. Maka mostly managed to avoid any attention. A few hours after dinner, Maka was allowed to retire for the evening. Samantha however, was ordered to the room of Dr. Evans' father. Maka figured she would be woken up once Dr. Evans' father was done with Samantha, so she decided to simply wait for her. Many thought went trough her head as she lied on her bed, looking at the ceiling. Who was that witch who attacked Morcerf and Morrel? Something about that witches' description rang a bell. Then she remembered. That was clearly Medusa, who lived in a cottage near her village. It was possible that Medusa had successfully evaded the slaver's attack, since it took two hours to reach her cottage by foot. The village people had great respect for Medusa, despite the fact that she obviously engaged in treasonous activities. While she didn't went so far as openly denouncing the president, it was obvious to anyone that she wasn't a big fan of him. The reason the townspeople tolerated her was because she mixed potions for them. Maka had never really understood what the villagers used the potions for. It couldn't have been medicine, since the government of West Wyoming provided free healthcare. In exchange for the potions the villagers send her cake, wine and various other stuff. Maka had often carried the basket with these gifts to Medusa's cottage. They had told her never to stray from the path, which Maka never did. Medusa's cottage was decorated with black arrows, which she referred to as vectors. Once she had arrived at Medusa's cottage, Maka waited until Medusa had packed the potions into Maka's basket. This part was always very boring, therefore Maka spent the time looking through Medusa's stuff. Medusa owned a large closet with ingredients of bizarre nature, frog eyes were the most mundane thing in her pantry. But the thing that drew her attention the most was Medusa's book. It was very large book, always lying open on a stand. Maka had once tried to decipher the book, something that didn't really work out for her. More specifically, the book was written in a language she did not understand, she couldn't even recognize a single letter. Also Medusa had caught her, and she had been very mad with Maka for looking into her book, so mad that she didn't gave Maka an apple, like she usually did. Maka lost interest in the book after that, because she would rather get apples.

Then she remembered the writing in Medusa's book. It was the same as the one in the book she found today while she was cleaning the bookshelf for the first time. That meant that the book was really a book containing arcane knowledge. Now that she knew for sure that the book contained arcane knowledge, she wondered what she should do with it. Since she couldn't read the writing, the only thing would be to ensure it's safety until she could understand the writing. But who would teach her this language. It would be impossible, there was no one who could teach her. Therefore the book would have to be destroyed. But if she destroyed the book, she would be in massive trouble, if she got caught. Maybe the power of the book had been exaggerated. It probably wasn't even worth destroying. Also, she didn't know where Dr. Evans' had put it. She couldn't destroy it, not even if she wanted to. She had to find out a way to destroy it without getting herself in trouble. But she didn't know where it was.

Then Maka began to wonder whom Medusa was looking for. She wasn't trying to rescue the villagers, since she didn't do anything to ensure that the slaves she freed got away. And why should she, neither the villagers nor the Medusa were dependent on each other. Who or what was Medusa looking for? Was it this book with the eye? No, if it was the book with the eye, she would not have attacked Morcerf and Morrel. In fact, the only reason to attack them would be to find somebody from the village. But who could she be looking for? Maybe for Maka. But that was unlikely, while she did act as a courier between Medusa and the villagers most of the time, Medusa did not really like her, especially not after the incident with Medusa's book, after which Medusa looked like she was ready to beat Maka into a bloody pulp. Maybe Medusa was looking for Meme. Meme had only been sent to Medusa's cottage once and got lost on the way. The villagers eventually found her after a day, before any of the animals that lived in the forest did, like wolves. Maybe she was after the mayor. That was also unlikely, as Maka believed the mayor had relatives who could pay ransom. Maybe Medusa was looking for Crona. There were even rumors in the village that Crona was in some way related to Medusa, thought one could only guess in which way exactly. So if Medusa was looking for Crona, despite the fact that she had often claimed not to have any living relatives, Crona had good chances of being liberated. Maka was now jealous of Crona. Then Samantha entered and got into bed.

"Goodnight Maka", said Samantha.

"Say, what will happen to you once you aren't your master's favorite anymore?", asked Maka.

"Then I'll have to service his guests, to show his hospitality", said Samantha, shivering at the prospect, "while we're on the subject, you'll have to change the bedding of the bed in the guest room next to your master's room".

"Why?", asked Maka.

"It got messy", said Samantha. Maka hoped Samantha would be assigned to change the bedding.

"But that's not the room your master's sleeping in", said Maka.

"Your master didn't want to use me in his own bed, so he used an empty guest room", said Samantha.

"Well good night", said Maka, rolling over.

"Good night", said Samantha.

**Dear readers,**

**Call me squirtle has pointed out that there is a canon character named "Samantha". If this surprises you, as it surpised me, it's because said canon character gets killed within the third prologue episode, where she first appears. In order to avoid further confusion, I would like to point out that the "Samantha" in this fanfiction is an OC, they just coincidentally have the same name.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated.**


	92. Sunday afternoon

Maka woke up on Sunday at seven o'clock, along with Samantha. They prepared breakfast for their owners, who departed after eating. They would not be back until evening. Maka and Samantha then cleaned the rooms that she hadn't cleaned over the last week yet and the laundry before changing the bedding in guest room Samantha had pointed out. By the time they were done, it was noon. They ate lunch.

"So everything is done and nobody is here to see if we actually do any work?", asked Samantha.

"Now that you mention it, that is actually the case", said Maka.

"What should we do?", asked Samantha.

"What do you if you sometimes have some time off?", asked Maka.

"I talk with my comrades, sometimes we play soccer", explained Samantha.

"Doesn't that game require a ball?", asked Maka.

"Yes, it does", said Samantha, "but it's rare that we play soccer, because it only happens rarely that enough slaves have time off at the same time".

"And what should we do?", asked Maka.

"We could lie around in the sun", said Samantha.

"But what should we do about that book with the eye?", said Maka.

"I say we destroy it", said Samantha, provided we can find it again".

"But if we destroy it, we'll get in trouble", said Maka.

"If we completely destroy the book, so that there's nothing left", said Samantha, "then they'll never even know".

"But wouldn't they notice that the book went missing?", asked Maka.

"Your master didn't know he had it until you found it, he'll probably just assume he lost it again", said Samantha.

"But what if the book is not real?", asked Maka.

"It's real, all the details match up", said Samantha.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence", suggested Maka.

"How could it be just a coincidence?", asked Samantha.

"Maybe Wolnzach was destroyed in some other way", said Maka.

"And how do you suppose was it destroyed?", asked Samantha.

"Towns can get destroyed in different ways", said Maka, "My hometown, for example was burned down by Dr. Eisenberg".

"Why did he burn the town down?", asked Samantha.

"He wanted to capture the survivors as slaves", said Maka, forcing herself to keep a calm expression.

"Looks like he was succesful", said Samantha.

"How did you become a slave, anyway?", asked Maka.

"I was traveling by ship along the coast of California", said Samantha, "then pirates attacked and captured the ship. The pirates then sold us to somebody for weapons. He then sold us to a slave trader in New Nevada".

"Could have been Louis K", said Maka.

"Why?", asked Samantha.

"He's an arms dealer", said Maka.

"Despicable", said Samantha.

"Speaking of Louis K, I better give him his meat cleaver back", said Maka, fetching the meat cleaver from the kitchen.

"That thing looks scary", commented Samantha, "what did you need it for?"

"To prepare that duck I prepared on Friday", said Maka, throwing the meat cleaver and catching it by it's handle.

"Don't throw the meat cleaver", said Samantha, "That's dangerous". Maka simply chuckled to herself and went over to Louis K.'s house. When she knocked, Jonathan opened.

"Hello Jonathan", said Maka, "Here's your master's meat cleaver back". Looking past Jonathan, she saw a painting which caught her interest.

"Thank you", said Jonathan.

"What's that painting?", asked Maka.

"This painting, by some insignificant nobody whose financial situation is probably ridiculously bad but has a doctorate in art, portrays my master Louis K", explained Jonathan, "It depicts a rural scene. It shows Louis K, drawn as a farmer, planting seeds. These seeds however, are really bullets of different shapes and sizes. A short distance behind him the plants already start to sprout. In fact, the painting shows the plants in all stages of development, the more they are away from Louis K., the more mature they are. The plants flowers are skeleton hands of the human skeleton. After the flower has wilted, the fruit will grow in it's place. The fruit is a human skull. The remaining structure of the plant is made up of human bones, too. The artist used every bone in the human body exactly once on the mature plant".

"I never thought you'd know so much about art", said Maka.

"I don't, master made me memorize", said Jonathan.

"Can you read?", asked Maka.

"No, can you?", asked Jonathan.

"No", said Maka.

"You know, the funny thing is that my master made me memorize speeches about all the art pieces he had commissioned", said Jonathan, "But you're the first to actually ask me about one of them".

"What does 'commissioned' mean?", asked Maka.

"It means 'bought', or something like that. I'm not sure", said Jonathan.

"Why does he even collect these things?", asked Maka, "You'd expect him to feel more insulted than honored about that paining".

"I have no idea", said Jonathan.

"Goodbye", said Maka.

"Goodbye", said Jonathan. Maka went back to her owner's house. She found that Samantha had lied down in garden, letting the sun shine on her.

"Did you find the book?", asked Maka.

"No", said Samantha.

"For a potentially world-destroying artifact, you're giving it a rather low priority", said Maka.

"I tried to find it, but I couldn't", said Samantha.

"Where did you look?", asked Maka.

"Everywhere except your master's office", said Samantha.

"So you think it's in his office?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Samantha.

"Say, how did you check all the books in the few minutes I was gone?", asked Maka, "I mean, we both can't read".

"I checked the side of the book for writing", said Samantha, "Whenever I found no writing, I pulled the book out and looked for the eye on the cover".

"Clever system", said Maka.

"Thanks, I know", said Samantha.

"But shouldn't we be searching for the book?", said Maka.

"I don't think finding the book will be so important", said Samantha.

"Why not?", asked Maka.

"The dark master could just make a new one", said Samantha.

"You're right", said Maka, "I also highly doubt that the book is real".

"Why?", asked Samantha.

"Because someone could have just sat down and scribbled all that stuff down", said Maka, "In fact, I could produce such a book, if I had writing utensils".

"What about the eye?", asked Samatha.

"I think that is some sort of trick", said Maka, "When I touched the eye, it felt like cold and hard".


	93. Pinedale

"Have you ever touched a human eye?", asked Samantha.

"No, have you?", said Maka.

"Then how do you know what they feel like?", asked Samantha.

"I just don't think they feel like glass", said Maka, "if you want, I can try with your eye".

"No thanks", said Samantha.

"I suggest we do nothing about the book for now", suggested Maka.

"That could prove fatal", said Samantha.

"There seems to be nobody around who can use it, and a wrong move could easily cost our live", said Maka, "do you have a better idea?". Samatha thought for a few minutes.

"No, not really", said Samantha.

"So, what do we do now?", asked Maka.

"Lie around in the sun", suggested Samantha, lying back down, once again letting the sun shine on her. Maka went back inside and, remembering her earlier resolution to learn how to read, she went into her owner's library and grabbed a random book, and tried to decipher the text. The first page was some kind of introduction written by the author. Maka tried to deduce what the book was about. By the time the sun was going down, she had figured that it was something about law. She wondered why her owner had such a book, then she remembered that he was a lawyer. Looking out of the window, Maka realized that her owner would be coming home soon, so she should put the book away and decided to look busy, so she started cleaning the anteroom. Her owner arrived while she was busy sweeping the anteroom.

"Welcome home, master", said Maka, stopping her sweeping.

"I trust you have fulfilled your duties", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "should I prepare dinner now, master?".

"Yes", said Dr. Evans after checking his watch. Maka went into the kitchen to start preparing dinner. There she saw that Samantha had already started preparing a bread. The bread fell down on the floor, landing buttered side down.

"Can't you do anything right?", asked Maka.

"Well I...", stammered Samatha.

"Get out before you start a fire", said Maka. Samantha hurriedly left and Maka prepared the dinner, before she cleaned up the mess made by Samantha. She then brought the bread to Dr. Evans' and his father.

"Only bread?", asked Dr. Evans' father, sounding disappointed, "She should get whipped for her laziness".

"I normally only eat bread for dinner", said Dr. Evans, "I didn't tell her to prepare something else".

"Well, bread is fine", said Dr. Evan's father.

"If you want, Maka can prepare something warm", said Dr. Evans.

"There aren't many ingredients left, master", said Maka, "But there is enough for a soup".

"On second though, forget it", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka.

"Say, why is Dr. Blackstar so interested in the book?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Because it might be a magical artifact", said Dr. Evans, "and collecting magical stuff is his hobby".

"What magical artifacts does he have, anyway?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"An amulet which strangles you to death if you put it on", said Dr. Evans.

"Wonder how he figured that out", said Dr. Evans' father, "What did he mean when he said he would surpass god within the next five years?".

"I don't now, two years ago it was seven years", said Dr. Evans, "last year it was six years and now it's...". Dr. Evans paused contemplatively.

"Whatever he's trying to pull, it appears go according to plan", said Dr. Evans' father.

"That's kinda scary, he's one of the last people I'd trust with godlike power", said Dr. Evans.

"Not just godlike, he's going to be superior to god", said Dr. Evans' father, "A god god".

"I wouldn't trust him with such power either", said Dr. Evans. Dr. Evans' father finished his bread.

"Well, plans for divinity are prone to failing", said Dr. Evan's father, "After all, nobody succeeded yet".

"Guess you're right", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm always right", said his father.

"Ignoring the time you had that one slave crucified for stealing some important documents, when you only had them misplaced", said Dr. Evans.

"We got him down in time, didn't we", said Dr. Evans' father.

"His resale value still took a massive dip", said Dr. Evans.

"I didn't end up selling him, so that's irrelevant", said Dr. Evans' father. Dr. Evans finished his bread and both men stood up.

"Let's play some music", suggested Dr. Evans.

"Good idea", said his father, "how about the song of the earth". Maka wondered what this song of the earth was, as she started to clean the dishes. Was the song magical, or was it just a song about the earth. Then Maka remembered how illegal witchcraft was in this country. Unlike West Wyoming, where witchcraft was mostly legal. In West Wyoming, witches could only be charged for witchcraft if they used it to commit another crime. If, for example, a witch used her magic power to desecrate an image of the president, she would not just get twenty-five years of reformative labor, but fifty. Certainly a sentence even a witch would not survive. At least Maka never heard of anyone who has ever come back from reformative labor. She remembered how Meme's parents were sentenced to five years of reformative labor without right to correspondence when Meme was six years old. Meme and her siblings had been adopted by by their neighbors, normally they would have been placed in a juvenile reformation camp, but the mayor vouched for them. Three years later, they got the message that Meme's mother had died of typhus, not that Maka knew what that was. A year and a half later, Meme's father had died of pneumonia. While it may seem sad, it was really a good thing, even though it would have been even better had they survived. Being given reformative labor instead of death or exile was a chance to atone for one's sins. Through reformative labor the culprit could repair the damage he had inflicted on the government and the president. If you can't atone through reformative labor, your redemption is death. Meme's parents died free of guilt, all their crimes forgiven. Systems like these proved the infinite wisdom of the president.

Juvenile reformative camps were facilities were misguided youths were reformed. The government achieved this trough harsh discipline and a strict daily schedule. Maka didn't know anyone who had been sent to such a facility, since the mayor of the village had vouched for Meme, but Maka had once closely avoided being placed into one herself. She had said something dumb about the president while she was in the first grade. The teacher reported the infraction to the local office of the Government Interest and Safety Department. They then summoned Maka to a hearing. During this hearing it had been suggested that Maka be sent to Pinedale Juvenile Reformation Camp for girls for one year, treatment to be extended as necessary. However, due to the fact that her father came back highly decorated from his time in the military, they decided to let her off with a warning. They did, however, make it perfectly clear that if something similar should occur again, Maka would be sent to Pinedale for a four year treatment. However, Maka never said something similarly dumb again. She had also never meant what she said, she just didn't know what her words meant. She had even taken a vow that to make up for her dumb remark, she would join the army once she was eligible. If she wanted to uphold that vow, she would have to escape. Having finished the dishes, she went into the living room, to see if her owner needed anything.

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you master", said Maka. She then went to bed and slept until Dr. Evans' father was done with Samantha and she went to bed, too. Then the two captives went to sleep.


	94. Small talk with Marie

The next morning Maka found a thousand dollar bill on the dining table, because she would have to go and buy bread.

"Where are you going?", asked Samantha.

"To buy bread", said Maka.

"Can I come, too?", asked Samantha.

"I don't know", said Maka, stepping out of the door. Samantha didn't follow Maka. Maka quickly went to the bakery. Maka feared that maybe Meme was once again manning the register. She wanted to avoid a repetition of what happened the last time Meme manned the register. Luckily, when Maka entered the bakery, Ms. Nakatsukasa was manning the register. However, it seemed that a long line had formed, as if everybody had decided to buy bread now. Meme was sweeping the floor, the rag in her mouth had been removed by now.

"Good morning, Meme", said Maka quietly, once Meme was close to her.

"Hello Maka", said Meme, sounding unhappy.

"Why so grumpy?", asked Maka.

"I just don't like you", said Meme.

"Why not?", asked Maka.

"You already got me in trouble, twice", said Meme.

"That wasn't my fault", said Maka, wondering why Meme didn't forget that like she forgot everything else.

"Yes it was", said Meme.

"No it wasn't, it was your fault", said Maka.

"Then how comes I got in trouble immediately after you talked to my mistress for the first time?", asked Meme.

"I had to deliver a letter of complaint for my master", said Maka.

"So it was your fault", said Meme.

"No, it wasn't, I didn't have a choice", said Maka.

"I bet you could have supressed the letter", said Meme, "but you didn't, because you're mean".

"I would have ended up on a cross had I done that", said Maka.

"But if he had done that, he would have to buy a new slave", said Meme, "he'd probably rather safe the money".

"He's rich, eleven million mean nothing to him", said Maka.

"Then why does he send you to buy bread?", asked Meme.

"You suppose he should go and buy it himself?", asked Maka.

"I always thought rich people don't eat bread", said Meme.

"Everybody eats bread", said Maka.

"Meme, are you arguing with a customer again?", asked Ms Nakatsukasa sternly. Meme looked down, mumbling something.

"She wasn't arguing, madam", said Maka.

"Shut up and focus on your work", said Ms. Nakatsukasa to Meme, who did as she was told. Maka waited until it was her turn to buy bread.

"Good morning Ms. Nakatsukasa", said Maka.

"Morning Maka, nice to see you", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "'shut up and focus on your work', that's a piece of advice you should embrace, will save you from many whippings, and perhaps it will even safe your life".

"Thanks, but unlike Meme, I already know that", said Maka.

"You two know each other from earlier, don't you?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, we come from the same town", said Maka.

"Anyway, rye bread, like always?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, please", said Maka.

"That would be seven hundred fifty dollars", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Here you go", said Maka, handing her the money.

"Have a good day", said Ms Nakatsukasa. Maka left the bakery and went back to her owner's house. She prepared breakfast and fetched the mail, finishing the preparations by putting serving the tea. Her owner and his father came downstairs at five past seven.

"Go grocery shopping", ordered Dr. Evans, handing her twenty thousand dollars.

"Yes, master", said Maka before she left the house for a second time. On her way to the market place, she mentally went over the list of things she would have to buy for her owner. Vegetables, noodles, fruit and pasteurized milk. Maka wondered what the difference was between normal milk and pasteurized milk. She arrived at the marketplace and noticed to her disappointment that Patty was no longer at the pillory. On the other hand, the police officer had told her that they would let her go after one week. Then Maka wondered what had happened to Liz. Thinking of how attractive Liz was, Maka concluded that she didn't want to know. She bought the vegetables, noodles and the fruit. Maka tried to remember the way to that store where her owner had bought the pasteurized milk. Maybe she could just buy normal milk instead, and he wouldn't even notice. Maka started to look for a stand that sold milk. But while she was looking, Maka couldn't help but to think about the whipping she would receive if her owner found out. She had foolishly never tried the pasteurized milk, so she couldn't tell if it tasted different from regular milk. Maka came to the conclusion that the punishment for taking too long to buy groceries would not be as bad as the punishment for deceiving her owner. Therefore she decided to look for the store. She saw the police officer who had guarded the pillory earlier. She decided to ask him.

"Excuse me, officer", said Maka.

"Yes?", asked the officer.

"I have to buy pasteurized milk for my master, but I don't know where it's sold and he's probably already getting impatient with me", said Maka.

"Give it up", said the police officer, "Give it up!", turning around and chuckling to himself. Maka wondered where the store was. Maybe she should just come back empty handed and tell her owner that she didn't find the store. But what would happen if she did that? Would she get a whipping, 'to sharpen her sense of direction'? Would her owner do something even nastier to her? Maybe, but she definitely wanted to avoid getting a whipping, since whippings hurt. Then she spotted Marie from behind. Maybe Marie could help her. Marie went into a small store. Maka followed her and entered the store. It was a butcher's shop. Marie was about to leave when Maka entered. She wore a black eye patch on her left eye, which she didn't wear earlier, it had a yellow circle with a horizontal thunderbolt on it.

"Hello Marie", said Maka, she decided she should make some small talk before asking for directions, it couldn't hurt to make some friends.

"Hello, Maka", said Marie.

"How was testifying in court?", asked Maka.

"It was horrible", said Marie, looking down.

"At least you got a cool eye patch out of it", said Maka.

**Dear readers,**

** This chapter contains a reference to one of the greatest writers who ever lived. Can you guess who? And maybe even tell me the story I'm referencing?**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated**


	95. Philosophie of pain

Marie broke out in tears. It was to late that Maka realized that she had practically just said the worst thing she could possibly say.

"I'm sorry", said Maka, "I didn't mean to say that". Marie continued to cry. The torture must have been truly horrible if simply being reminded of it was enough to drive Marie to tears. Or Marie might just be a crybaby. But if Marie didn't calm down, Maka would not be able to ask her about where to buy pasteurized milk. Or she could just ask someone else. But she couldn't leave Marie crying. It was bad enough that she was unable to prevent her from being tortured, but she shouldn't rub salt into these wounds.

"Listen Marie", said Maka, "I know getting tortured is horrible, but you have to move on".

"You cannot imagine or remember pain, each time you feel pain, it's new and fresh", said Marie. Maka didn't know what to make off this statement.

"I don't understand", said Maka.

"It's was Louise told me about pain", said Marie, sniffling, "before she got started on me".

"What did she do?", asked Maka.

"I don't want to talk about it", said Marie.

"Somebody told me it helps to talk about these things", said Maka.

"Who?", asked Marie.

"Samatha", said Maka, "You probably don't know her".

"Morning Maka", said Louise, "Morning Marie". Marie ran out of the store, only to be stopped by a police officer.

"What by the president did you do to her?", asked Maka, thinking quickly, she added "madam".

"Nothing to bad, just standard stuff", said Louise casually, "Could have hurt her a lot worse". Maka wanted to say that she thought that Louise was scum and deserved to be tortured to death in her own torture chamber, but she didn't want to know what would happen to her if Louise told her owner.

"I don't want to know what else you could have done, madam", said Maka.

"A lot", said Louise, "You see, torture is an art. Any thug can kill, but it takes skill and grace to inflict long lasting agony. There are so many details that one must consider. If you inflict to much pain, the subject will lose consciousness. If the level of pain is to high, they will be unable to say anything do to incessant screaming, so you would have to turn the torture down a bit.

As I've already stated, I consider myself an artist. I'm a Michelangelo of excruciating pain, a Da Vinci of agony. The thing is, when you torture somebody, you have to inflict excruciating pain, but at the same time, you must treat them with great care, like a delicate flower. This apparent contradiction is what makes it an art. On the one hand, you have to hurt them, but on the other hand, you need to keep them alive for as long as possible, so that they can experience as much pain as possible. The main problem with keeping people alive as long as possible is human mortality. Humans are not immortal and will eventually die, no matter how they are treated. Therefore the art lies in keeping people alive while simultaneously hurting them.

The question is now how to accomplish this. A beginner would just go about inflicting pain, more on that later, and hoping that the subject will say something useful before it dies. But a true professional such as myself will take the victims survival into account. Simply by observing the subjects physique and its reactions to different stimuli, I can tell when it will give in to pain or die. Because I take these things into consideration, none of my subjects die or fall unconscious if I don't want them to.

While keeping the subject alive is an important part of torture, the real reason you are torturing in the first place is because you want to inflict pain or another kind physical or mental discomfort. But in order to know about how to inflict pain, we will have to discuss what pain is in the first place. Pain is basically the body's alarm clock. When something bad is happening to your body, you feel pain to inform you of that fact, so that you can react and take action to stop it. We can now use this alarm for our own purposes, since the it can quickly become unbearable and overload the brain.

While it is certainly the most well known torturous feeling, pain is only one sensation that can cause people to wish for death. Loud noises or nausea can also be efficient. Another particularly nice thing is sleep deprivation, But we will first focus on how to create pain. There are many tools to choose from, but not the availability of said tools makes a good torturer, but their use...".

"While I would love to listen to your speech, I have to buy pasteurized milk for my master", said Maka.

"Then what are you doing here?", asked Louise, "this is a butcher's shop".

"I can't find the store that sells pasteurized milk", said Maka.

"I can show you", said Louise, taking out a map out of her purse, she then proceeded to show Maka where they where at the moment and how she should walk now.

"Thank you, madam", said Maka as she turned to leave, glad to finally get away from Louise. She followed Marie's directions and arrived at the specialized food store her owner had showed her. She went up to the register, which was once again manned by the same black haired female slave, who looked somewhat like Ms Nakatsukasa.

"I would like four bottles of pasteurized milk, please", said Maka.

"That would be ten thousand dollars", said the slave at the register.

"Bye", said Maka after she had received the milk and paid it. On her way to her owner's house she couldn't help put wonder why Louise found it necessary to gouge Marie's eye out. Maybe Louiske had thought that Marie would look better with an eye patch. While that was not really a motive for a sane person, it worked for somebody like Louise.


	96. Dr Blackstar's house

Once Maka had arrived back at her owner's house, she put the groceries she bought into the appropriate places. Then Dr. Evans called her, which worried her that she might be in trouble.

"Yes, master?", said Maka.

"Bring this book to Dr. Blackstar", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka's eyes widened as he handed her the book with the eye on it. Now she could destroy it.

"I know that you and Samantha want to destroy it because you think it holds the power of unimaginable evil", said Dr. Evans, "That's why I want you to bring me a written confirmation by Dr. Blackstar that he received it. If you do destroy the book, I will have you crucified".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Maybe Dr. Blackstar wanted to use the book for himself. But if nobody knew about it until she found it, the book could not be part of Dr. Blackstar's plan. But what was his plan, anyway. How did he want to achieve divinity? Maybe he was just crazy. But if he was just crazy, how did he become district attorney? Maka went already to leave the house.

"I haven't told you where he lives", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, "where does he live?". Dr. Evans described the way for her.

"Did you get all that?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Good, now go", ordered Dr Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. After roughly twenty minutes she arrived at Dr. Blackstar's mansion. The yard was kept niece and orderly, there were currently five slaves working. Two were trimming the hedges, one was mowing the lawn, using some kind of wheeled device which he pushed. Another slave was raking the grass together. The last slave was pruning a tree. Maka went up to the gate and wondered what she should do. She tried to open it, but it didn't work. The gate was locked. She saw a button on one of the gate's posts. She pushed the button. Nothing happened. Maka looked if there was maybe something else she could try, like another button.

"Who's there?", crackled a voice. Maka was startled, a voice out of thin air.

"I'm Maka,...", stammered Maka, what should she call the voice? Voice? No, that would be rude.

"...sir", said Maka.

"What do you want?", asked the voice.

"I have to bring something to Dr. Blackstar", said Maka, holding up the book, not knowing whether the voice could see her or not.

"Wait here", ordered the voice. A short time later a well dressed young man left the mansion and went up to the gate. He was a slave, but he also wore a suit, possibly indicating that he held a high status in the household.

"What do you have?", asked the slave.

"I'm supposed to give this book to Dr. Blackstar", said Maka.

"Just give it to me, I'll give it to him", said the slave.

"I have to give it to him personally", said Maka.

"Did Dr. Evans send you?", asked the slave.

"Yes", said Maka.

"I knew it", said the slave to himself, opening the gate, "Follow me". Maka followed the slave. Surprisingly, they didn't go inside Dr Blackstar's mansion, but around it. On the side of the mansion, there was another small entrance, which they did use.

"When you get send to bring something to my master again, go to this entrance instead", said the slave, leading Maka into what seemed to be the slaves' quarters, a hallway with ten rooms, five on each side, each door had a peephole and a number, that's how Maka could tell that these were the quarters for the slaves. Dr. Blackstar must have dozens, if not hundreds of slaves. Even if every slave had a room for himself, he would still have a lot of slaves.

"How many slaves does Dr Blackstar have?", asked Maka.

"Counting his harem, a hundred and fifty", said the slave. They passed an open room, revealing that the inside of each room consisted of a bunk bed with two bunks. Maka couldn't see a whipping post in the room like in her room, but maybe there was one somewhere else.

"What's an harem?", asked Maka.

"Where you keep your sex slaves", said the slave. They had reached the end of the hallway and entered on into a large room, with a whipping post in the center. In one corner of the room where two slaves chatting with each other. Opposite from them was a female slave breastfeeding an infant. The infant was a slave, too. Maka wondered what it was like to spend one's childhood enslaved, maybe she should ask Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"What's this room for?", asked Maka.

"Roll-call and punishment", said the slave.

"How does Dr. Blackstar order his one hundred and fifty slaves around, anyway?", asked Maka.

"That's my job as head butler", said the slave, "He tells me what he wants to get done, and I see to it that it gets done".

"Sounds dumb", said Maka.

"It's called a chain of command", said the head butler.

"I guess that's why you're dressed so good", said Maka.

"Yes, this position has other perks, too", said the head butler, "I have quite large quarters, in fact, I enjoy a standard of living better than most of the people in this country". They had left the slave quarters.

"And does Dr. Blackstar punish the slaves himself?", asked Maka.

"No, that's part of my responsibilities, too", said the head butler.

"So if someone annoys you...", asked Maka.

"I have to log all punishments", said the head butler, "so I can't just punish them whenever I want". They met two female slaves on the hallway, both were rather scantily dressed, wearing a dress that exposed their thighs and showed of their cleavage. The dress was too short, too, it didn't reach to the ankles.

"Let me guess", said Maka, "Their part of his harem".

"Yes, two sisters", said the head butler, "he prefers the older one, but neither of them are his favorite". A short while later they met another slave who looked like she was part of the harem.

"And the one we just passed is Dr. Blackstar's favorite", said the head butler.

"She looks a lot like Ms. Nakatsukasa", said Maka, "In fact, the two earlier looked a lot like her, too".

"Who's that?", asked the head butler.

"A former slave who now owns a bakery", said Maka. They went down a few more corridors and eventually arrived at a large black double door. The head butler knocked.

"Master", called the head butler.

"What is, Jim?", asked Dr. Blackstar.

"Dr. Evans has send someone with a packet for you", said Jim.

"Let her in", ordered Dr. Blackstar.

"Yes, master", said Jim, opening the door. Maka stepped inside Dr. Blackstar's office. It was mostly decorated with statues and paintings of Dr. Blackstar, including a statue of Dr. Blackstar looking at a statue of himself.

"Here's the book, sir", said Maka.

"Say 'thank you' to Dr. Evans for me", said Dr. Blackstar.

"I will, sir. I need written confirmation that you received the book, sir", said Maka. Dr. Blackstar scribbled something down on a piece of paper, before he handed it to her.

"Be on your way now", said Dr. Blackstar, "Jim, escort her out".


	97. The bank

Jim escorted Maka out of the mansion, through the same hallways and room. Once she was out of the mansion, she went back to her owner's house. Now she would have to give the written confirmation to her owner. She thought about looking in his office. So she knocked on the door.

"Yes?", asked her owner from behind the door.

"I delivered the book to Dr. Blackstar, and brought written confirmation that he received it, master", said Maka.

"Enter", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka as she entered, Dr. Evans was talking to a client of his. She handed him the written confirmation from Dr. Blackstar. Dr. Evans quickly read it over, then he gestured for Maka to leave. Maka quietly left the office and went into the kitchen, where she started to prepare lunch. After a while Dr. Evans entered.

"Bring this letter to the bank", said Dr. Evans, handing her a closed envelope, "I want written confirmation that they received it unopened, understand".

"Yes, master", said Maka, "but I'm in the middle of preparing lunch now, I can't leave it unobserved for such a time".

"Samantha could prepare it", suggested Dr. Evans' father. Maka thought he was joking, but he wore a completely sincere expression.

"Good idea", said Dr. Evans, his father called for Samantha.

"What are you waiting for, go and deliver the letter", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master, sorry master", said Maka as she left the kitchen and the house, "Where is the bank, master?".

"When coming out of the courthouse, turn right and go straight, tenth house on the left. No go", said Dr. Evans. Maka left the house and went once again to the market place. Went inside the courthouse and left it again immediately, to turn left. She followed the street and counted the houses. The tenth one was a large building with a large sign over its door. Inside the building there was a large room with several lines of people waiting in front of a counter. There was also a slave sweeping the floor.

"Is this the bank?", asked Maka.

"Yes", answered the slave.

"I have to bring this letter to the bank, and have to bring back written confirmation", said Maka.

"Stand in line and wait your turn like everybody else", said the slave. Maka went to one of the lines and waited. After about half an hour, it was her turn.

"My master wants me to deliver this letter", said Maka, "He wants written confirmation that you received it unopened". The clerk grumpily wrote on a piece of paper and handed it to her after she had handed him the letter. She noticed that the this confirmation was a bit longer than the one Dr. Blackstar wrote. It had to contain the information that he had received the letter unopened. But that amounted to just one word. Maka wished she could read. Josef K. came downstairs and went through the lobby. Maybe she could ask him to read it for her. But how would he react, after all he wanted to rape her once? What if he remembered it if she talked to him? But maybe he would get distracted again. And if he truly wanted to rape her, it would only be a question of time. Sooner or later, he would get invited to dinner again, then he could ask her owner for permission. And there was nothing she could do about it. But what if talking to him would be perceived as rude? But what could the clerk have written on the confirmation? It was probably something that would get her in trouble. The worst thing that could happen was that she got in trouble, but that would probably happen anyway if she didn't do anything.

"Good morning Mr. K, sir", said Maka.

"Hello, Maka", said Josef K. Maka contemplated how she should proceed.

"Could I ask you something, sir?", asked Maka.

"What?", asked Josef K.

"What is written here?", asked Maka, showing him the confirmation.

"I confirm that the letter has been delivered unopened. The slave who delivered is was quite rude", read Josef K. Maka gripped her head. She hadn't been rude. But if she showed this document to her owner, she would be punished as if she had been rude. He had told her that the punishment would be even more severe than the last time someone complained about her.

"Excuse me", said Josef K to a customer of the bank, "I saw you were standing behind this slave here. Is it true that she was rude to the teller?".

"No, but that guy was rude to me", said the customer, "why do you ask?"

"Just so", said Josef K, walking up to the clerk, Maka followed,but kept some distance.

"Kaminer, where's the letter by Dr. Evans you just received?", asked Josef K.

"Here, sir", said Kaminer, handing him the letter, "seems to be a simple transaction order, I don't know what's so important about it".

"The Evans are among our most important business partners", said Josef K.

"Yes, sir", said Kaminer. Josef K went back upstairs. Maka wondered what she should do. Maybe she should wait. A few minutes later, Josef K. came back downstairs. He handed her a sheet of paper. It contained writing. Short, like the confirmation Dr. Blackstar had written earlier.

"Show Dr. Evans this instead of the one Kaminer wrote", said Josef K.

"Why are you helping me?", asked Maka.

"Don't push your luck", said Josef K.

"Yes, sir", said Maka, "Goodbye, sir".


	98. Samantha's punishment

Maka left the bank and went back to her owner's house. She found Dr. Evans and his father sitting in the dining room.

"I've delivered the letter and here's a written confirmation, master", said Maka, handing him the confirmation.

"Good work", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka.

"Go to the bakery and buy six sandwiches", ordered Dr. Evans handing her five thousand dollars, "If she doesn't have enough sandwiches, buy something else".

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"I still don't believe Samantha could screw this up this badly", said Dr. Evans' father while Maka was leaving, "sorry about your kitchen".

"No problem, it can be cleaned", said Dr. Evans as Maka left the house. She quickly went to the bakery.

"Good day, Miss Nakatsukasa", said Maka as she entered the bakery.

"Hello Maka, here again?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"There was some sort of accident in the kitchen, and now I have to go and buy sandwiches, madam", said Maka.

"Aren't you the one who cooks?", asked Miss Nakatsukasa.

"Normally, but my master's father is visiting and he brought his sex slave along", said Maka, "I was send to deliver a letter, and Samantha was ordered to cook, madam".

"And she screwed up?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Bad enough that I have to go and buy something to eat, even though I could cook something", said Maka, "Speaking of which, six sandwiches please, madam".

"That would be a thousand fivehundred dollars", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Here, thank you, madam", said Maka, handing her the money and taking the sandwiches.

"Bye, be careful that they don't fall apart", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Goodbye, madam", said Maka.

"Goodbye Maka", said Miss Nakatsukasa. Maka went back to her owner's house and handed them the sandwiches, luckily they hadn't fallen apart yet, and the money. Maka waited while the two men ate, to see if they might needed something. After they had finished Dr. Evans gave Maka the two remaining sandwiches.

"Eat them outside", said Dr. Evans. Maka did not understand this command, why shouldn't she eat it in the kitchen like always.

"Yes, master. Thank you, master", said Maka.

"Samantha is currently cleaning the kitchen. You are not allowed to help her", said Dr. Evans, "You are not allowed to enter the kitchen until she is done". Maka wondered what was the meaning behind these orders. Maybe they wanted Samantha to clean up the mess she made. How long would that take? Not very long, the kitchen had only been cleaned recently, so Samantha should already be done. But she wasn't. She must have screwed up badly.

"Yes, master", said Maka, left the house and ate her sandwiches. Back inside she started cleaning the dining room, but not the kitchen, after all she wasn't allowed to. Maka didn't know whether she should be glad or not. On the one hand, she had less work to do. But on second though, that wasn't true. She would just have to clean the kitchen later. But Samantha was cleaning it, so maybe she could get away with not cleaning it this week. She could use the additional time to practice reading. But how risky was it to try and learn to read? What would her owner do if he caught her? He would probably whip her or do something even more nasty to her. Maybe he would even crucify her. Alone the thought made her shiver. It must be horrible, hanging from a cross for several days, waiting to die. She tried to take her mind of it, but it proved very difficult to do so.

Maka eventually managed to stop thinking about how painful crucifixion would be when she started to iron the laundry. As Maka was folding a shirt, she wondered just how big a mess Samantha had made in the kitchen. Then she was thankful that she was not the one to clean it up. But why did Samantha only have to clean up the mess she had made? If Maka had messed up her owner's kitchen to a point where it took hours to clean, and delayed his lunch, she would at least have gotten a whipping, if not something more severe. Why was Samantha treated so mildly? But maybe Samantha would get a whipping later. Maybe she had already gotten a whipping. Maka went into her quarter and checked. There was nothing that indicated that a punishment had taken place today. No blood on the floor. But whippings that drew blood seemed to be rare. At least she had never been subjected to one. She went back to the ironing board, finished the ironing and carried the clothes up to her owner's bedroom. Dr. Evans was lying on his bed, reading a book. Maka put the clothes into the dresser.

"Maka", said her owner as she was about to leave.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"You'll have to give Samantha a whipping later, once she's done with the kitchen", said Dr. Evans, "I'll be watching, do it right or get one yourself, understood?".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Maka went back to doing the laundry and thought about this situation. This was some interesting cruelty. She would have to beat another captive. Apparently, like Dr. Blackstar, Dr Evans did not want to punish his slaves himself, but since he only had her, he had no other choice. But now that Samantha was here, Maka would have to carry out the punishment. That also meant that if Maka got in trouble while Samantha was still here, Samantha would carry out the punishment.

Samantha finished cleaning the kitchen right when Maka wanted to start preparing dinner, Dr. Evans' father ordered her to go to Maka's quarter and disrobe. Maka, do to the fact she wasn't ordered otherwise, continued preparing dinner. Her owner and his father ate the dinner.

"Eat for yourself, clean the dishes, and punish Samantha", said Dr. Evans'.

"Yes, Master", said Maka. She ate and cleaned the dishes. Then she went and fetched the whip. On one level, she was glad that she wouldn't feel it on her back. But on another, she wished she wouldn't have to bring it down on Samantha. Maka went into her quarter, where Samantha was already waiting, completely naked. Samantha stared at her, looking Maka in the eye. What did she want to say. 'I don't blame you'? 'I hate you'? 'I know you don't have a choice'? Maka put the whip down and began restraining Samantha, who was slightly shaking, but didn't try to resist. They both knew how futile that would be. Dr. Evans entered the room.

"Good, begin", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She took a deep breath, wound back her arm and brought the whip down on Samantha's back, who tried to arch her back away pathetically. The whip hit nonetheless. As Maka brought down the second lash, she hated herself for what she did. She wished she could take this whipping herself, so that she wouldn't have to whip Samantha. But of course, that would not help Samantha at all. It would only result in her getting a whipping, too. After four lashes, Samantha was crying. Soon she would lose count of the lashes. Maka tried to land the lashes in a way that avoided interference. But this was impossible. She delivered lash after lash after lash, how long would she have to continue whipping Samantha? Maybe her owner would not say stop, leaving her to determine herself when the punishment was over. Samantha lost the strength to cry, turning her crying into a weak gasping for air. Maka knew that if she stopped now, her owner would take over and she would get a whipping right after, so she continued. She delivered five more lashes. Then ten more. Then fifteen more. While she gave Samantha three more lashes, she wondered if she could stop now. And after two more, she did.

"Good", said her owner, "release her restraints".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Samantha fell to the floor.

"My father wants to use you later", said Dr. Evans to Samantha.

"Yes, young master", cried Samantha.


	99. After Samantha's punishment

"You, put the whip away and get back to work", said Dr. Evans to Maka.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went and put the whip away and began cleaning the bathroom on the ground floor. She saw Samantha walk to the basement, to use the shower there. Maka wondered what Samantha was thinking about her. She would have to ask her later, after Dr. Evans' father was done with her. After a few minutes Samantha went upstairs, where Dr. Evans' father was waiting for her. Dr. Evans started to play the piano. He played several wonderful songs before Maka finished with the bathroom. She went into the living room and listened to her owner playing the piano. She hated to admit it, but she would miss his music once she had escaped. Maka wondered for how long she could get away with listening to the music without doing any work. Her owner seemed to be completely focused on the music. Therefore he would not notice that she wasn't doing any work until he stopped playing. And given the fact that his father was upstair, having fun with Samantha, there was no risk of him catching her, either. Maka enjoyed the music for a while.

"Maka!", called Dr. Evans, turning around, "oh, there you are".

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"Bring me a glass of water", ordered Dr .Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and went into the kitchen, where she filled a glass of water from the sink. She went back into the living room and handed him the glass. He took it wordlessly and drank half the glass.

"May I ask you something, master?", asked Maka.

"I don't see why not", said Dr. Evans.

"What exactly did Samantha do that she was punished?", asked Maka, then she quickly added, "I want to avoid making the same mistake".

"She ruined the lunch and made a huge mess in the process", said Dr. Evans, "I thought you already knew that".

"Yes, master" , said Maka.

"Then why did you ask me?", asked Dr. Evans, "Are you trying to waste my time?".

"No, master", said Maka.

"Then shut up", said Dr. Evans, who then resumed playing the piano. Maka stood there silently, which turned out to be a mistake. Dr. Evans turned around again, noticed her still standing around there, doing nothing. So he slapped her.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, rubbing her cheek, "I'll get back to work now, master". Maka went to double check the kitchen, she wanted wanted to know how Samantha managed to create a mess that took hours to clean up. How could one have screwed up the meal? Maybe by letting the pots boil over, and letting the meat burn. But cleaning that up would only take a few minutes at most, if one cleaned up immeadiately, maybe Samantha had waited to long. She looked for clues that might make it possible to understand what happened, but she found none. Maybe she didn't look hard enough? She looked again and came to the conclusion that Samantha had cleaned the kitchen very thoroughly. Maka went back into the living room. Her owner had finished the glass of water she had brought him earlier. Maka waited until he finished the current song.

"Should I bring you a new glass of water?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans, "you may retire for the evening".

"Thank you, master", said Maka, but Maka wanted to check on Samantha first. But was she allowed to go upstairs? Maka decided to wait by the stairs. She tried to hear Dr. Evans' father and Samantha, and by putting her hand behind her ear, she could hear a soft rhythmic moaning. Then Dr. Evans' stopped playing the piano. Maka quickly went into her quarter, but kept the light on and continued to listen. Unfortunately, she couldn't hear anything from her quarter. She would just have to wait for Samantha. It was tedious wait, but Samantha eventually entered the room.

"I'm sorry I had to whip you", said Maka.

"It's not your fault", said Samantha. Maka was relieved. She had feared that Samantha had blamed her for what happened.

"I want to sleep", said Samantha, she turned of the light and got into bed.

"Goodnight", said Maka. But Maka couldn't sleep. Samantha had quickly fallen asleep, but Maka stayed awake. She felt guilty about how she hurt Samantha earlier. But she never had a choice. If she had refused to whip Samantha, Samantha would have gotten a whipping anyway, and she would have gotten a whipping, too. If she had not done it, it would have increased the amount of pain in the world. She would have to escape. But how would she get rid of her collar? Her plan hadn't progressed at all. She was still trying trying to find a way to get rid of her collar. Maybe there was no way to remove the collar. No, Vanessa had said that it was possible to open them without the key. But filing them open could take days, and it wouldn't work with an ordinary file. Maybe it was possible to pick the lock. But Maka had no idea about how to pick a lock. Meme said something about picking locks when they talked in the slaver's truck. Maybe Meme could teach her how to pick a lock. But how would Maka talk to Meme in private? Ms. Nakatsukasa would not allow the two to talk to each other in private. Or maybe she would? Maka had never tried. But Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed to be very fond of Dr. Evans, if she caught Meme and Maka talking about escape or lock picking, she would probably tell him. While Maka didn't know what Ms. Nakatsukasa would do to Meme in this case, Maka could be sure that she would be crucified. Maybe there was somebody else who could teach Maka how to pick locks. But she couldn't think of anybody. Maka turned around in the bed and softly bumped against Samantha, who was sleeping peacefully. Maka turned in the other direction and tried to get to sleep, too, but failed for several hours. The next day would be bad.


	100. Lunch for Soul's fiancee

Maka was very tired when she woke up the next day. She barely made it out of bed. She prepared breakfast for her owner and his father. She still felt tired when they came downstairs. Maka stayed in the dining room, to see if they needed anything.

"Your fiancee is coming over tomorrow for lunch", said Dr. Evans' father.

"How long is she staying?", asked Dr .Evans.

"Just tomorrow", said Dr. Evans' father, "she'll be accompanied by her father".

"I'll tell Maka to prepare a meal for four people", said Dr. Evans, "Maka, you need to prepare a meal for four people tomorrow".

"Yes, master", said Maka, "What should I cook, master?".

"Pick something", said Dr. Evans.

"How about an asparagus soup as appetizer, followed by a fried rabbit and as dessert a Wyoming pudding, master", suggested Maka.

"Nice, but I don't like the dessert", said Dr. Evans.

"How about a marble cake instead, master", suggested Maka.

"That sounds good", said Dr. Evans, "I believe you'll have to go and buy the ingredients".

"It would actually be better to buy the rabbit tomorrow, master", said Maka, "that way it won't need to be fed".

"Didn't you need to borrow a meat cleaver when you prepared the duck?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Go and buy a meat cleaver, too", said Dr. Evans.

"When should I go and buy these things, master?", asked Maka.

"Tomorrow morning", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. The two men finished their meal. Maka proceeded to cleaned up the table and do the dishes. The next morning, Maka prepared breakfast. She had expected that she would have to go and buy groceries, but her owner hadn't put any money on the table. During breakfast he handed her a letter.

"They might refuse to sell you a meat cleaver. If they do, show them this letter", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, "should I go shopping now?".

"Yes", said Dr. Evans, handing her money.

"Yes, master", said Maka and left the house. She went and bought the groceries, taking great care to pick a healthy rabbit. After all, the lunch had to be perfect, she would have to make a good first impression on her owner's future wife. Maka then wondered where she could buy a meat cleaver. She asked a random passerby, who kindly told her where a she could buy knives. She went into that store, picked out a reasonably priced meat cleaver and went to the register to pay.

"I can't sell you this", said the clerk.

"I'm sorry, maybe this will clear things up, sir", said Maka, handing him the letter. The clerk looked at it.

"I can't read", said the clerk, "I'll go call the manager". He called the manager. A slave entered the room from a door behind the counter. He was better dressed than Maka, in fact, he was better dressed than the clerk who manned the register.

"This slave wants to buy a meat cleaver, and she handed me this letter, sir", said the clerk, handing him the letter. This slave was the manager? An interesting situation.

"She can buy it", said the manager.

"Why?", asked the clerk.

"Shut up", said the slave.

"Yes, sir", said the clerk. Maka paid for the meat cleaver and left, contemplating the events she had just witnessed in the store. Why was this slave in a position of authority over a free person? Who owned that slave? Definitively not the guy who was manning the register. Probably the owner of the store. That would mean that the owner of the store had put the slave in charge of the store, and then hired a clerk to help out. But why hire someone when he could just buy a slave? Maybe he had a slave to fill that position, but the slave got sick and unfit for work, so he hired someone to fill in for him until he was healthy again. Maka wondered how her owner would react if she got sick? Would he cut her some slack? No, he would probably tell her to suck it up and keep working. He might even give her a whipping just for being sick.

When Maka arrived at her owner's house, she started preparing lunch. She first prepared the marble cake, it would need time to cool. It was also the first time she prepared marble cake. She had gotten the recipe from the mayor's daughter, but she herself had never prepared marble cake, since her family couldn't afford any cocoa. She just hoped the chocolate would cool down fast enough. She put the cake in the stove. Now it was time to start preparing the rabbit. She picked up a long, sharp knife and took the rabbit out of its cage. It tried to escape, but Maka held on to it. She pommeled it on the head with the knife, knocking it out. She plunged the knife into its throat and ripped the throat out. She hung it head down above the sink, so that it would bleed out. While she waited for the rabbit to bleed, she started preparing the soup. Once the stock was boiling, she beheaded the rabbit with the meat cleave before she skinned it. Then she proceeded to remove it innards, and then she stuffed it, before she put it in the oven. The rabbit was on its way, and the stock of the soup was boiling nicely. Maka went to set the table. Samantha entered the room, walking towards the kitchen.

"Stay out of the kitchen", said Maka.

"I just want to help", said Samantha.

"You can help by not touching anything and shutting up", said Maka. Samantha quietly left the dining room. Maka went back into the kitchen and turned the temperature on the soup down, before she removed the cake from the stove. She then but up water to melt the chocolate. Once the chocolate was melted, she put it on the cake and left it to cool off. At half past eleven, she heard a knock on the door.


	101. Julia

"Good day, you must be Dr. Albarn", said Dr. Evans in the anteroom.

"And you must be Dr. Evans, my future son in law", said Dr. Albarn. Maka wondered whether it was the redhead or his brother. Probably his brother. After all, her owner was going to marry the redhead's niece. Maka wondered whether she should serve the soup now.

"Hello, Specter", said Dr. Evan's father, "Glad you could make it".

"Nice to see you, Dr. Evans", said Dr. Albarn, "This is my daughter, Julia".

"Nice to meet you", said a feminine voice coldly.

"Nice to meet you, too", said Dr. Evans, "I'll see how the lunch is coming along". She heard him walk into the kitchen.

"Is lunch ready?", asked Dr. Evans.

"The appetizer can be served now, master", said Maka.

"Good, do that", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Her owner left the kitchen and she served the soup. When she was finished putting the last plate down, her owner came with a bottle of wine in his hands.

"Serve this wine, too", said Dr. Evans, handing her the bottle.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She took out some wine glasses and started serving the wine. While she was process of setting the third glass on the table, the guests entered the room. A redheaded man, looking a bit older than the redhead who used to follow Screwhead around, dressed in an elegant suit, like her owner and his father, and a young albino girl, dressed in an elegant white dress, looking a bit younger than Samantha. The girl was followed by a young female slave, who looked like she was as old as Samantha. The redhead, the albino girl, Dr. Evans' father and Dr. Evans sat down and started eating their meal. Maka went back into the kitchen, to look after the rabbit. A short while later the female slave who followed the albino girl entered the kitchen.

"Hello, what's your name?", asked the female slave.

"Maka, and yours?", asked Maka, watching the rabbit in the oven.

"Evelyn", said the female slave.

"Nice name", commented Maka.

"So you're Dr. Evans' slave?", asked Evelyn.

"Yes", said Maka, "and you, are you Julia's slave or her father's?".

"I'm Julia's slave", said Evelyn.

"Let me guess, you mostly have to hold a parasol for her", said Maka.

"Yes, how did you know?", asked Evelyn.

"Occasionally I have to do that for my master, figured since she's an albino, she would have the same problem's with sunlight", said Maka.

"You're very smart", said Evelyn.

"Thanks", said Maka, Evelyn was apparently easy to impress, or a flatter, "What do you think about the upcoming marriage between my master and your misstress?".

"I don't really know", said Evelyn, "but Julia, err mistress has been very upset about it".

"How so?", asked Maka.

"She's been talking about it nonstop, like when I'm doing her hair, about how she can't believe that she is going to be married to somebody she has never even met, it makes my live a living hell", said Evelyn, "What does your master think about it?".

"He seems to be very calm about it", said Maka.

"How does he treat you?", asked Evelyn.

"He gets angry about the smallest mistakes, I have not yet been able to go two days without getting a whipping", lied Maka. Evelyn's eyes widened considerably.

"He'll be my master in a year", said Evelyn, gripping her brunette hair.

"I was joking about that", said Maka.

"They want more wine", said Samantha as she entered the kitchen, "Where's the bottle".

"Over there", said Maka, pointing at the wine bottle.

"Thanks", said Samantha as she took the bottle.

"Anyway, how does he treat you?", asked Evelyn.

"I guess normally", said Maka.

"How often does it happen that he whips you?", asked Evelyn.

"The last time he whipped me was Friday", said Maka.

"What for?", asked Evelyn.

"A hair in his food", said Maka, "and how does Evelyn treat you?".

"It strongly depends on her mood", said Evelyn, "she's been angry about the fact that she's going to get married the last few days, and she's been taking it out on me. Yesterday she had me whipped for practically no reason at all. But when she's in a good mood, she's pretty generous, sometimes she even gives me money or lets me have time off".

"My master let me have time off once", said Maka, "after he won a court case, but he never lets me have any money. Well, he sometimes gives me money so I can buy stuff for him, but he always checks how much is left when I come back".

"Does he use you for sex?", asked Evelyn.

"No", said Maka.

"Would have surprised me", said Evelyn, "tiny-tits".

"You don't have the largest rack, either", said Maka.

"Evelyn", called the feminine voice, presumably Julia, from the dining room. Evelyn went into the dining room. A short time later, Maka was called into the dining room as well.

"This is my slave, Maka", said Dr. Evans, pointing at Maka, who had taken the wise precaution of standing as far away from any men at the table as possible.

"Her cooking is miserable", said Julia, "she should be punished".

"I like it", said Dr. Albarn, whose first name Maka presumed to be Specter.

"I like it, too", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Let's vote on it", said Dr. Evans, "Who thinks Maka should be punished". Julia raised her hand. She then shot an angry look at Evelyn, who raised her hand as well.

"Slaves don't get a vote here", said Dr. Evans to Julia, "Let's proceed, who is in favor of not punishing Maka?". His father and her father raised their hands, Dr. Evans did so as well.

"So its decided, Maka doesn't get punished", said Dr. Evans.

"Could I borrow two rags?", asked Julia.

"Sure what for?", asked Dr. Evans, "Maka, fetch two rags".

"Yes, master", said Maka as she left the dining room.

"To punish Evelyn", said Julia, "she voted despite the fact that she wasn't allowed to, I'll give her a whipping later". Maka fetched two clean rags, she had cleaned some after she had been gagged herself.

"Insert the rags into Evelyn", ordered Julia.

"Yes, madam", said Maka. She then went over to Evelyn, who opened her mouth obediently. Maka inserted the rag with a heavy heart, before tying the other rag over it.

"Bring me a second serving of this soup", ordered Julia.

"Yes, madam", said Maka. She wanted to say "I thought my cooking was miserable".

"This is only the appetizer, you should wait for the main course", said Julia's father.

"Yes, father", said Julia.

"Should I still bring the soup, sir?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Specter Albarn.


	102. Serving the rabbit

"How is the main course coming along?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It will be ready in a few minutes", said Maka.

"What is the main course, anyway?", asked Dr. Specter Albarn.

"Rabbit, sir", said Maka.

"Sure it's rabbit, I heard rabbit can be confused with cat", said Dr. Specter Albarn.

"I'm sure it's rabbit, sir", said Maka.

"How can you tell", asked Dr. Specter Albarn.

"I butchered it myself, sir", said Maka, "would you excuse me, I have to check on the rabbit". Maka went into the kitchen and checked on the rabbit. It was ready to be served. She took it out of the oven. Then she went and collected the soup plates. Then she served the rabbit.

"This rabbit looks delicious", said Dr. Specter Albarn. Maka cut a nice piece of rabbit for the four free people present. Then she went back into the kitchen. Evelyn followed her. Maka looked at Evelyn, who remained silent, since she had a rag stuck in her mouth. Maka wondered how long Julia would make Evelyn keep the rag in her mouth. A day, two or three? Probably however long it took her to accept the fact that she was going to get married to Dr. Evans, or maybe until she had calmed down a bit.

Maka was called to the dining room again, and then ordered to fetch a fresh bottle of wine. She went into the basement and picked one at random. She brought the wine bottle back up and showed it to her owner, who asked his guests. They approved it, and Maka served the wine. Then there was a ringing sound. Dr. Evans went to the apparatus with the horn and picked up the horn and held it to his ear.

"Dr. Albarn, it's for you", said Dr. Evans. Dr. Albarn went over and took the horn from Dr. Evans.

"Dr. Albarn?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"Reinforce the guards and cut the rations in half", ordered Dr. Albarn.

"Order thorough search of all barracks, move some into the...", ordered Dr. Albarn, now frantic.

"What! Decimate them!", yelled Dr. Albarn.

"Call the army! Hire a battalion of mercenaries! I don't care, just get the situation under control".

"Goodbye", said Dr. Albarn. Then he put the horn back on the apparatus and went back to his seat.

"Anyway, how did that court case go?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"Well, the deciding evidence was the testimony of a slave named Marie", said Dr. Evans, he then went on explaining how he won the case.

"That sounds easy", said Dr. Albarn.

"It isn't easy", said Dr. Evans.

"I mean, they tortured Marie, so getting to the truth should have been easy", said Dr. Albarn.

"I personally find it useless", said Dr. Evans.

"What, torturing slaves when they testify?", asked Dr. Albarns.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"But how else would we know they told the truth?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"If torture makes everybody tell the truth, then why isn't done to everyone who testifies in court?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Because citizens don't need to be tortured to tell the truth", said Dr. Albarn.

"A skilled torturer could make anyone say anything", said Dr. Evans.

"They wouldn't say anything true without encouragement", said Dr. Albarn.

"You're lying", said Dr. Evans, "If what you just said held true for only one of your slaves, you'd have sold them to a fuel farm by now".

"They don't lie to me because they fear me", said Dr. Albarn.

"Now that's actually true", said Dr. Evans.

"I've never seen someone get tortured", said Julia, "My governess won't let me".

"If you're normal, it will only be interesting to watch for the first time", said Dr. Evans, "It may be interesting a second time if you're angry at the victim for some reason". Dr. Evans' father emptied his wine glass and Maka refilled it.

"Do you know someone who always finds it interesting?", asked Julia.

"Louise", said Dr. Evans.

"Why don't you marry her instead?", asked Julia "if you know her so well".

"Our parents wouldn't approve", said Dr. Evans.

"Who is that, anyway?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"The torturer at the courthouse", said Dr. Evans. Maka went into the kitchen to check on the marble cake. The chocolate had almost fully cooled. In a few minutes, she would cut a few pieces. Maka decided not to go back into the dining room, she instead wanted to clean the dishes, only to find that Evelyn had already cleaned them.

"Thank you", said Maka. Evelyn gestured wildly, Maka assumed that Evelyn wanted to say that she's welcome. Was somebody getting gagged a such frequent occurrence in the Albarns household that the slaves had developed a sign language for it? But why did Evelyn need so much movement for such a little comment? Maybe they didn't really have a sign language, and Evelyn was just improvising.

"Do you have some sort of code language?", asked Maka. Evelyn shook her head.

"Does that mean no?", asked Maka. Evelyn nodded. Maka assumed that that means yes.

"So you've found a way to communicate without words", said Maka. Evelyn shook her head.

"Why not?", asked Maka. Evelyn began to gesture widely.

"You never had enough time?", suggested Maka, guessing. Evelyn gestured more frantically.

"This doesn't seem to be working", said Maka. She then went to check whether the cake should be served now. Her owner and his guests had gotten through most of the rabbit, they looked like they were sated. Serving the cake could wait for some time, until there was a bit more room in their bellies.


	103. Going for a walk

"Bring the cake now", ordered Dr. Evans. Apparently he had a higher estimate of his stomach capacity. Maka cut a quarter of the cake into pieces and served it along the entire cake. She put the cake on the dessert plates and collected the plates for the main course. She went into the kitchen to do the dishes.

"Maka", called Dr. Evans. Maka immediately went into the dining room. They had eaten half of the cake, which surprised Maka.

"Clean the table now", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She took the plates and the cake back into the kitchen. When she came back into the dining room to clean the table, her owner and his guests had already left the room. Then she heard a piano playing from the living room. She couldn't tell who was playing, but it was probably Dr. Evans, or maybe his father, or one of the guests. Could all rich people play the piano? Maybe it was fashionable. After Maka had cleaned the dishes, she looked at the marble cake. She had seen marble cake before, in the mayor's house, but she had never eaten any. She could eat a slice now, nobody would notice. Except maybe Evelyn. Would Evelyn tell on her? But why would she do that? Jealousy, would she be jealous because she couldn't eat a slice of the cake? Maka wondered how she could ensure that Evelyn would not tell on her when she ate a slice of, and came up with a brilliant plan.

"Evelyn!", called Julia. Evelyn left the kitchen. Maka's feelings about this were mixed. On the one hand, now she could eat the cake without any witnesses, and she hadn't even done anything. On the other hand, her plan was brilliant. But now she would never get to put it into operation. Maka cut herself a slice of cake and ate it. It possessed a soft, sweet taste. She ate it slowly, savoring every bite. But too soon, she had eaten the slice. She thought that they wouldn't notice if two slices were missing, so she cut herself another one.

"Are you eating the cake?", asked Dr. Evans. She hadn't noticed how the piano music had stopped. What should she say? It probably didn't matter, she would get a whipping anyway.

"I'm sorry master", stammered Maka.

"I'm not angry", said Dr. Evans, then he went to the sink and washed his hands, "Don't eat any more of it, though".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans left the kitchen again. Maka decided to eat what was left of the rabbit. But before she started, she asked herself if this was such a good idea. Her father had once told her about something known as rabbit starvation, that if you only eat rabbit, you'll starve to death. While she didn't eat enough rabbit to starve to death, she wondered if eating this rabbit would make her even hungrier than she was now. That would explain how her owner was able to start eating the cake so fast. But wouldn't he need to digest the rabbit first before he could eat something else.

"Maka!", called Dr. Evans. Maka went into living room.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"Grab my parasol", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the anteroom, where she grabbed her owner's parasol. Her owner entered the room as well.

"Do you want your coat, master?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans. His guests followed him into the anteroom, along with Evelyn and Samantha, who also carried parasols. Dr. Evans left the house, and Maka opened the parasol and held it over him, so that the sun could not burn him. The guests followed and two of them were also shielded with parasols. They walked for roughtly half an hour, until they met Dr. Blackstar, accompanied by and elderly female slave, who was dressed fancily, yet decently.

"Good afternoon, Blackstar", said Dr. Evans.

"Good afternoon, Soul", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Is that slave part of your harem? She's dressed like she is", asked Dr. Evans. Maka wondered how her owner came up with this idea, this slave wasn't dressed like one of his sex slaves.

"Yes", said Dr. Blackstar.

"I think I've seen her before", said Dr. Evans' father.

"What about that book I send you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It's a cheap gimmick", said Dr. Blackstar, "I wonder whether or not the real one is out there, somewhere".

"Maybe, you think that legend is true?", asked Dr. Evans.

"As far as I know, Wolnzach was destroyed by the first citizen of Europe", said Dr. Blackstar.

"But he did not rely on supernatural powers to do so", said Dr. Evans.

"Exactly. Therefore I concluded that the legend isn't entirely true", said Dr. Blackstar.

"How's your collection of magical artifacts coming along, anyway?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It's larger and more complete than your collection of technology", said Dr. Blackstar, "The only thing that's missing would be a live witch".

"I just realized I forgot to introduce some people", said Dr. Evans, pointing at Julia, he added, "This is Julia, my future wife. This is her father, Dr. Specter Albarn".

"Nice to meet you", said Dr. Blackstar.

"That slave used to be your father's favorite", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, she's my mother, to be precise", said Dr. Blackstar.

"We basically grew up together, and I've never met your mother", said Dr. Evans.

"Wait, so his mother is his sex slave?", asked Julia.

"You see, I inherited the harem from my father", said Dr. Blackstar, "since he only had sex with the women in his harem, one of them has to be my mother".

"Why did he limit himself to his harem?", asked Julia.

"Because the district attorney is not allowed to have an intimate relationship", explained Dr. Evans.

"But doesn't he have an intimate relationship with his sex slaves?", asked Julia.

"Where did you even learn what sex is?", asked Dr. Albarn.

"Samuel told me", said Julia.

"Having intercourse with a slave is legally masturbation", said Dr. Evans.

"What's masturbation?", asked Julia.

"I'll explain when you're older", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm going go get married to you in a year", said Julia.

"I'm still not going to tell you", said Dr. Evans.

"I'll just look it up in a dictionary", said Julia defiantly.


	104. Diamond

"Anyway, good luck with wedding", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Bye", said Dr. Evans. Then both groups went about their way. They walked through the town square, Dr. Evans told them that there was an execution scheduled for Friday. Apparently, a beggar had stolen a loaf of bread was going to die for it. They walked down a street which Maka had never walked before. They came past a store that sold jewelry, a jeweler's shop. Julia stopped abruptly to look at the jewelry in the display window. A bunch of pretty rocks stuck on shiny metals. Technically, jewelry was completely useless, and yet Maka had always envied those who could afford it. To her, it was always as if they used it to elevate them above their fellow men, a way to silently say "I'm better than you". She hated it, but at the same time, she had always wished that she could wear jewelry. Julia was talking about how pretty these rock were, but Maka didn't really pay much attention to it. Eventually, she mentioned that her favorite jewel was diamond. Dr. Evans' father chuckled, stating that it was also the most expensive.

"I want that one", said Julia, pointing at a necklace with clear, white rocks, "Can I? Can I?".

"Why not", said Dr. Evans, "I'll have to make a stop at the bank first, though".

"Thank you! Thank you!", said Julia, hugging him tightly. After Dr. Evans managed to dislodge himself from his fiancee, the group continued on their way. They went around some corners, before they eventually arrived at a large plaza with a tower on its other side. In the middle of the plaza was a statue of the same three eyed man who was portrayed fighting with that creature with that skull mask on the town square.

"This is Asura plaza", explained Dr. Evans, "It has been build as a memorial to the battle between Asura and the lord of death. Asura, a very powerful guardian god, freed the people of Death City from the tyrannical rule of the lord of death. The old Death City was destroyed during this battle, so they build this town, New Death City. From the top of this tower, you can still see the ruins of old Death City".

"Let's check it out", said Dr. Evans' father. The view from the top of the tower was very nice, one could see a couple of ruins to the north, though only the silhouette could be made out. It looked like a giant cone. Dr. Evans explained that these were, indeed, the ruins of old Death City.

"What happened to Asura?", asked Dr. Specter Albarn.

"He got wounded during the battle", explained Dr. Evans, "This allowed a group of loyalists, calling itself D.W.M.A. to trap him in some sort of mine with crystals that inhibit his power. They say he's still trapped there to this very day".

"But at least the Lord of Death is dead", said Julia.

"No, he's been trapped in his own pocket dimension", explained Dr. Evans, "They say it's possible to contact him by writing his number on a mirror, by any means".

"And what's his number", asked Julia.

"I only know it's seven digits long", said Dr. Evans, "You'd have to try if you want to figure it out. If you want to summon demons with a mirror, I suggest trying Bloody Mary instead. Summoning her is way easier than summoning the lord of death".

"And how do I do that?", asked Julia.

"Stand in front of a mirror with a candle as your only light source", explained Dr. Evans, "Then you chant 'Bloody Mary', three times and slowly. If you've done everything right, she'll come and eat you". They continued to talk about how evil different summonable demons were, especially the lord of death.

"You know, the lord of death, or as I like to call him, Lord Death, wasn't actually the evil one, Asura was", said the symmetrical bald man.

"And how do you know that?", asked Dr. Evans' father. The symmetrical bald man looked down and mumbled something. Maka wished she could read lips. The symmetrical bald man left. Dr. Evans and guests continued to talk about New Death City's landmarks, ending by mentioning the field of repentance.

"That's were Maka here is going to end up if she ever tries to run away", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm well aware of that and would never think about running away, master", said Maka. The group then climbed down from the tower, and eventually arrived at the bank, where Dr. Evans waited at a counter. He withdrew some money and left the bank again. He then went into the jewelers store, where he went and bought his fiancee the necklace she wanted. He didn't really seem to care about the money. Julia put the necklace on.

"Tell me I look pretty", demanded Julia.

"You look pretty", said Dr. Evans.

"You, too, Evelyn, tell me I look pretty", demanded Julia. Evelyn made a series of mmmphs and grunts, accompanied by wild hand gestures.

"That will have to do", said Julia. The group went back to Dr. Evans' house. There, Julia demanded that Maka told her she's pretty, which Maka did. Maka hoped Julia would leave soon. Maka retreated into the kitchen, under the pretense of cleaning it.

"Did you know that diamond is the hardest metal?", asked Samantha.

"No, I didn't", said Maka.

"Do you know what that means?", asked Samatha.

"No", said Maka.

"It means that it can cut through all other metals", said Samantha.

"Even trough a slave collar?", whispered Maka.

"I don't know, maybe", whispered Samantha, "but a slave collar isn't entirely made out of metal". Maka would have to get her hands on a diamond.

"But the lock is", whispered Maka, "Why are you telling me this, I though you found escape to risky?"

I just wanted to share some trivia", said Samantha. Before dinner, the guest were getting ready to leave, Dr. Evans was saying his goodbyes to his fiancee and her father. Looking at Evelyn, he added, "I kinda need these rags back".

"Can't that wait?", asked Julia.

"No, it can't, I need to punish Maka", explained Dr. Evans. Maka's jaw dropped as she heard this.

"Fine", said Julia, then she took the rags out of Evelyn's mouth.

"Come here and open wide, Maka", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka obeyed reluctantly. He then shoved the rag into her mouth. Thankfully, he used the rag Evelyn had worn over her mouth. Julia and her father left and Maka went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"Punishment over", said Dr. Evans when Maka served dinner and pulled the rags from her mouth.


	105. Making a diamond

"Thank you, master", said Maka, glad and amazed that the punishment was over so soon. She then went back to work until she was eventually allowed to retire to her quarter. On Friday, Dr. Evans offered to let her watch the execution, if she wanted to. Maka didn't know how to react to it.

"Yes, thank you, master", said Maka, she didn't really want to watch the execution, but she wouldn't turn down some time off.

"Just be make sure lunch's ready on time", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She arrived at the town square early, Louise, dressed in her black executioner's hood, was adjusting the noose. Maka decided that it would be better if she watched the execution, in case her owner asked her how it was. She picked a nice spot in the market place and waited for the execution to commence. After about an quarter hour, they led a bearded man, dressed in rags, onto the scaffold. Louise put the noose over the doomed man's head and pulled it taunt. Looking at the man closely, she noticed that he appeared to be suffering from malnutrition. Then Dr. Blackstar went onto the stage, dressed in a very elegant black suit with a blood red tie.

"Today, we remove yet another foul criminal from society", said Dr. Blackstar, "This worthless scum is not worth shedding a tear over. He has always been a parasite, he never worked a day in his life. He was a burden on our society, a beggar in his good days and a thief in his worst, and if we wouldn't execute him for you today, he would continue to steal. People like him are what's wrong with the world. They have no other occupation but to beg for the coin for which the rest of us toil". He took a break to listen to the cheering of the crowd.

"I won't bore you with long speeches, I know you are eager to see us getting things done. But I must stress the importance of being a good citizen. Our country can only succeed if we all cdo our part, especially considering that parasitic elements such as this dilute the effort of our proud citizenship. Without further delay, hit the switch!". The man fell as the trapdoor opened underneath him. After a short fall, the noose stopped him and he began to struggle desperately, kicking the air in an effort to get up on the scaffolding again. Maka counted the seconds of his struggle. He was clearly struggling to breathe, and to her amazement, he was able to do so. After six hundred seconds, he stopped struggling. The crowd stopped cheering. The convict was dead. The crowd cheered one last time and dispersed, resuming their usual activities. Maka went over the marketplace, and looking at the clock on top of the courthouse, she decided that she had enough time for a walk before she had to prepare lunch for her owner.

On the way she passed the jeweler's shop again. Looking at the price tags of even the simplest pieces in the display window, she came to the conclusion that if she was rich enough to buy such a piece with a diamond in it, she wouldn't need the diamond to cut through the lock of her collar, she would probably be able to simply buy her freedom. But where else could she get a diamond. Maybe a bit less fancy diamond would do it, too. But since Maka didn't have any money, she could not afford anything, not even an apple. So the only option left would be to steal a diamond. In order not to attract attention, she would have to steal the least valuable diamond possible. So she continued walking aimlessly through town, which resulted in her getting stopped by police officers twice, who let her go after checking her collar, apparently walking around within the city was not illegal. But they would probably be after her when she left the city. She went back to her owner's house and prepared lunch.

A short while after he had eaten lunch, Dr .Blackstar came to visit him. Maka didn't bother much to eavesdrop on their conversation, but since she was cleaning the room next to them, it was impossible not to. They discussed a variety of things. Dr. Evans eventually mentioned the diamond necklace he had bough for his fiancee.

"I honestly don't understand how diamonds are worth that much", said Dr. Blackstar.

"They're very rare", said Dr. Evans, "like all expensive things".

"Actually, it's possible to just make these things", said Dr. Blackstar.

"And how, I heard it's elemental", said Dr. Evans.

"You just take coal and put a lot of pressure on it", explained Dr. Blackstar. Then they continued to talk about various other stuff, like how Dr. Blackstar managed to get that beggar sentenced to death, apparently, if said beggar had had a permanent place of residence, they would only have chopped his hand off. After Dr. Blackstar left, Dr. Evans went into his office, to get some work done. Maka wondered where his father was, but then she heard a soft rythmic moaning from the upper story. Maka went to the fireplace and picked up a handful of old coal, and closed her hand into a fist. She pressed very hard. She pressed harder than she had ever pressed before. She concentrated every little bit of strength in her young body into pressing on that piece of coal, to turn it into a diamond, which she would then use to cut through her collar once she ran away. She didn't know how long she would have to press, but after about ten minutes, she decided that it must have been enough and opened her hand. The coal she had picked up fell down onto the floor. Maka quickly grabbed a rag and cleaned it up. She wondered what she did wrong. Maybe she should have pressed longer and harder. Maybe it required more pressure than one can muster with one's bare hands. But there was no way she could exert a superhuman amount of force onto the coal. But if she wanted to escape, she would have to find a way of doing it. Or find something else that could cut through her collar.


	106. Chess

On Saturday morning, Dr. Evans' father and Samantha left. Maka was a bit sad, she had grown fond of Samantha. She wondered whether she would ever see Samantha again. Maybe if her owner visited his parents someday and took her along. Dr. Evans spent his morning reading books in his living room. He ate his lunch slower than usual, apparently he was thinking about something.

"I think I'll have some fun with you", said Dr. Evans. Maka feared what he might mean by that.

"What did you have you have in mind, master?", asked Maka.

"Chess", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know how to play chess, master", said Maka.

"I can teach you", said Dr. Evans, "Do the dishes and then come to the living room".

"Yes, master", said Maka. After she had eaten for herself and done the dishes, she obediently went into the living room. Her owner had already prepared a chess set. It was a quadratic board with a checkerboard pattern, on two opposite sides of the board stood a group of small figures. One of these groups was white, the other black. These groups were arranged in two rows. The front row consisted entirely of small figures. The row behind it was a bit more diverse. On both edges was a tower, followed by a horse. Then there was a round figure with a slit in the top. These three flanked two other figures left and right. A tall figure with a grown on top and just as tall figure with a cross on top.

"Take a seat", ordered her owner, pointing at the couch opposite of him.

"Yes, master", said Maka. The couch was very comfortable.

"This figure here is called the pawn", said Dr. Evans, pointing at one of the small white figures, "It moves one field in the direction of the enemy, but on its first move, it may move two. If it reaches the end of the board, you can promote it into any other figure". He then proceeded to explain how the rest of the figures were called and how they moved. Then he explained some special rules, called "en passant" and "castling".

"Did you get all that?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master, but may I ask a question?".

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"Why does the king have a cross on his head, master?", asked Maka.

"Tradition, an old religious symbol", explained Dr. Evans, "any other questions".

"No, master", said Maka.

"Then let us begin", said Dr. Evans. Maka was worried of how her owner would react if she beat him.

"Checkmate", said Dr. Evans four turns later.

"But I still have my king, master", said Maka.

"But how will you get him to safety?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka looked at the board, there wasn't much she could do. Maybe if her king killed his queen? No, then his bishop would kill the king.

"I don't know, master", said Maka.

"So I won", said Dr Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Let's play again", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans took a white and black pawn and put his hands behind his back. Then he held both hands out before him.

"Pick one", said Dr. Evans.

"The left one, master", said Maka. He opened his hand, revealing a white pawn.

"You get play white", said Dr. Evans, turning the board around, so that the white figures were on her side.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, before she waited for him to make his first move.

"That means that you get to start", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Checkmate", said Dr. Evans two moves later. Maka looked at the board. She still had her king, but there was no way to get him out of harms way. And she thought she had such a good plan when the game started.

"Get back to work now", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master, should I clean up that chess set?", said Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans. Maka got back to work, wondering how Dr. Evans was able to win so easily. Probably because she had never played chess before, whereas he had played that game before. Did he only decide to play with her because he wanted an easy win? Or was he just bored? Maka would probably never know. But what would her owner have done had she won the game. He would probably have punished her. Some time after dinner, he asked her if she wanted a rematch. Maka did not know whether this was really a question or whether a false answer would get her in trouble.

"If you want to, master", said Maka.

"I asked you a yes or no question", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, she would actually prefer to retire for the evening, but she feared saying no may offend him.

"You get to play white, get the first three moves and I'll play without the queen, and your king may move two squares at once", said Dr. Evans, "If I have reason to believe that you've been trying to lose on purpose, you'll get a whipping".

"Yes, master", said Maka, as she set up the chess set. She contemplated her first three moves, the fact that she got the first three moves at the start would give her a leg up. She had to plan ahead carefully, maybe she could even win this. She looked at her owner's face as she made her first move, hoping to judge by his reaction whether her first move was any good. He didn't move a muscle. He kept that stoicism as she made her second free move and throughout the third. At least these three free moves guaranteed that she wouldn't loose after two moves. In fact, she survived the early game, but her owner managed to take out her queen. A bit later, he managed to promote a pawn into a queen. This was the moment from which on she knew that she was losing. But had she played good enough to avoid getting a whipping? She would have to hold on as long as possible. But her army thinned with each turn

"Check", said Dr. Evans. Maka moved the king to safety.

"Check", said Dr. Evans. Maka moved the king to safety. Then she remembered that if a position repeated three times, it would result in a draw.

"Check", said Dr. Evans. Maka moved the king to safety. If this repeated two more times, it would result in a draw. Dr. Evans promoted another pawn to queen. Maka realized that even a draw was out of reach now.

"Checkmate", said Dr. Evans a few turns later, "you may retire for the evening".

"Thank you, master", said Maka.


	107. Another shot at making a diamond

The next day, Sunday, Dr. Evans left his house as usual, and as usual he told Maka that he would be back by evening and that she would be punished if she slacked off. Maka decided to use the day to try another way to make diamonds. She figured that since she couldn't put enough pressure on the coal with her hand, she would have to use a tool. Since the obvious choice for the job would be pliers, she searched for a pair of pliers in her owner's basement. It took her some time, but she found some. She went upstairs, took a piece of coal out of the fireplace, put it between the pliers and pressed hard. The piece of coal broke into two pieces and fell to the floor. Maka face palmed herself, she should have seen this coming. She put the coal back into the fireplace, before she cleaned up the coal dust that had fallen to the floor. She had to find a way to prevent the coal from falling to the floor. It had to stay in the pliers.

Having an idea, she fetched two pot lids and put them between the pliers. While some balancing would be necessary, it seemed to work. She picked up another piece of coal from the fireplace, they became difficult to pick out from the ash. She put the coal between both lids and pressed the pliers. The piece of coal came shooting out from the edge between the pots and hit a picture standing on the fireplace, knocking it over. Maka feared what her owner might do to her if he found she had broken one of his pictures. She was afraid to look at it. But she had to gauge the damage, so she took a deep breath and looked at it. It was not broken, just a bit dirty from coal dust. She quickly went to clean it up and put the coal back into the fireplace. She needed to come up with something that made it impossible for the coal to escape.

She would need some kind of pot to put the coal into, so she grabbed one of the pots in the kitchen. Now she needed something to put pressure on the coal. She grabbed a lid a put it into the pot. That means she tried to, the lid fit the pot perfectly, which means that it didn't go in. She picked a lid from a smaller pot. It went in, but it didn't cover the bottom perfectly. It would have to do. She picked up some more coal from the fireplace and put it into the pot. She decided that she should do this outside, to avoid making another mess in the house. She put the coal into the pot and then put the lid over it. She tried to stomp on the lid, but her foot did not fit into the pot. So she picked up a rake and started bashing the lid with its handle.

"Just curious, but what exactly are you doing?", asked Jonathan.

"I'm making diamonds", said Maka.

"You know that artificial diamonds aren't worth as much?", asked Jonathan.

"I don't want to sell them", said Maka, "why would I?".

"If you had enough money, you could buy your freedom", said Jonathan.

"Actually, my plan is to use the diamond to cut through my collar", whispered Maka.

"I doubt that would work", whispered Jonathan, shaking his head slowly.

"Diamond is the hardest metal", whispered Maka, "it can cut through all other metals".

"I don't think diamond is actually a metal", whispered Jonathan.

"Then what else is it?", asked Maka.

"It's a type of rock", said Jonathan.

"But some rock can cut through metal", whispered Maka.

"Even if it would work, it would take forever", whispered Jonathan, "And how will you cross the border?".

"After I got the collar of, they won't know I'm a runaway slave", said Maka.

"So your plan is to linger around in this country, which every bounty hunter, police man or beggar after you until you get the collar off, at which point they would recognize you at the border anyway?", asked Jonathan. Maka did not know how to retort to this.

"Let's look how the diamond turned out", whispered Maka. The lid had lowered considerably, she was sure that this had worked now. When she opened the lid, she only saw coal dust. Maybe only a small part of it had turned into diamond. She thoroughly searched through the coal dust. A small diamond would be enough. As long as she could grab it with two fingers, it would do.

"And, find any diamonds?", asked Jonathan. Maka picked up the coal dust and let it flow through her fingers.

"No", said Maka, "I don't know what went wrong".

"Maybe you should try to use more pressure", said Jonathan, "Or maybe, have you noticed how things get hot if you put pressure on them".

"What do you mean?", asked Maka.

"That you should try heating it up as well".

"That's probably your own body heat", said Maka, "But I think it's worth try".

"Careful, don't use the stove, it might break", said Jonathan.

"But if I make a fire out here, my master will see it", said Maka.

"You're the one trying to escape, not me", said Jonathan.

"I don't really understand why you don't want freedom", said Maka.

"I want to be free, I just don't think it's worth risking my life over", said Jonathan. Maka looked for a place where she could light a fire. Maybe in the forest. She would also find firewood there. Then she realized that she was about to do something really stupid. If she held the pot into a fire, her owner would be able to see that she did something, because the pot would blacken. He would then have her questioned. And questioning was accompanied by torture. Under torture, she would confess that she had been trying to make diamonds in order to cut her collar so that she could escape. Then her owner would order her to be crucified, and she would die a slow and painful death. So she began cleaning the pot. The sun stood right above her and she was hungry. It was at this moment that she realized that she hadn't done any work yet, Dr. Evans would be angry with her when he came back.

**Dear readers,**

**I may be unable to update tomorrow.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated**


	108. Light bulb

Trying to alleviate the damage a bit, Maka went to work immediately. She worked very hard. And she got a lot of work done, but she would need a good excuse to avoid trouble. She tried to think of one while she worked, she couldn't tell him the truth, the truth would be her demise. But in the evening, when she went from the dining room to the living room, something bad happened.

She left the room, accidentally flipping the light switch on the way. The lightsphere lit up as usual, but then flashed up with a bang and went out. Maka froze immediately. This couldn't be good. Turning around she saw that the ligthsphere was out. She flipped the switch. It stayed out. She flipped the switch again. It stayed out. She started flipping the switch frantically. It stayed out. She had broken it, and her owner could come home any moment. How much was this thing worth? Louis K. had sold a similar thing in her village once. He priced it at ten West Wyoming Marks, which was about twenty times the yearly income of Maka's family. So if this lightsphere here was worth the equivalent in New Nevada Dollars, she was in a lot of trouble. She knew that she was eleven million dollars worth, but how much was that in West Wyoming Marks? Ten, twenty, or even thirty? She couldn't really say in how much trouble she was. What would her owner do to her if he found out she broke his lighsphere? He had said that if she broke something in his private museum, he would have her crucified, but this thing wasn't in his private museum. This was the dining room. But she knew that these lightspheres were extremely expensive, so the punishment would be quite severe. She went over her options. She couldn't cover it up, since her owner entered his dining room several times a day. There was also nobody who might be able to take the blame for her. There weren't any spare versions of this thing lying around. The only thing she could think of would be to take one from another room and install it here. But she didn't know how to remove these things, or how to install them. And even if she knew, there was no room in the house her owner never went into. She came to the conclusion that there was no way to cover it up. With that, the only viable options would be waiting until her owner saw it and punished her, or escape. But what would the punishment be. She did break something valuable, so it would probably be death. She didn't want to end up on a cross, so she would have to make a run for it.

She would back the backpack now and then leave. So she went to the basement, but she went through the anteroom on the way. It was at this moment that her owner came home. If she ran away now, she would be pursued immediately. She had to keep her owner from turning on the light until there was an opportunity to make a run for it.

"Welcome home, master", said Maka. It was at this moment that she noticed that her owner was being accompanied by Dr. Blackstar. "Good evening, Dr. Blackstar, sir", added Maka.

"Dr. Blackstar will be staying for dinner, prepare dinner for two", said Dr. Evans.

"Should I make a meal of several courses, master?", asked Maka.

"No", said Dr. Evans, "one is enough".

"Yes, master", said Maka. How could she stop them from going into the dining room. Maybe she wouldn't have to, the sun was still shining, maybe they wouldn't turn the lightsphere on. Maka went into the kitchen and started preparing dinner. What should she do. If her owner figured out that she broke the lightsphere, he would kill her, but with him present, it was impossible to pack any supplies, and she wouldn't make it far without supplies. But there was no long term way of preventing him from turning on the lightsphere. He would notice that it was broken sooner or later. Maybe he wouldn't crucify her if she told him herself. No, that was much to risky.

She could hear Dr. Evans and Dr. Blackstar enter the dinning room, chatting about the hunt for the witch who attacked Morcerf and Morrel. Apparently she had been sighted close to New Death City, so Dr. Blackstar would order the police to tell the people about the danger the witch posed and how to avoid her attacks. There also have been records that indicate that the witch is not capable of turning herself into an animal, unlike most witches.

"Better turn on the light", said Dr. Blackstar. Maka had to act now, but she didn't know what she should do. Dr. Blackstar made a huh.

"Looks like the light bulb's broken", said Dr. Evans, "Maka". Maka knew it would be better to make a run for it now, but still she went obediently into the dining room, overwhelmed by fear.

"The light bulb is broken, replace it", said Dr. Evans, "There should be a spare one in the junk room". Apparently, she wasn't in trouble.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the junk room and found a lightbulb after some searching. Was she really out of trouble?

"I don't know how to switch these light bulbs, master", said Maka.

"Just twist it", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She climbed on a chair and twisted the light bulb out of its holder, then she twisted the new bulb in. It lit up immediately.

"Wait, the electricity is still on?", asked Dr. Blackstar, "that's freaking dangerous, I lost several slaves to such accidents. They were so dead that even I could not revive them".

"Wow", said Dr. Evans sarcastically, "I didn't know you could revive the dead".

"That's something I'll be able to do in five years", said Dr. Blackstar, shouting, "After I've surpassed god!".

"Shut up", said Dr. Evans.


	109. Symptoms

"Anyway, let's eat", said Dr. Blackstar.

"Bring the food", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She did as she was told. A short while later Dr. Blackstar left, an hour later she was allowed to retire to retire for the evening. Over the next month she tried to figure out another way to get her hands on a diamond, or to find another suitable tool. However, she didn't find one. And as if that wasn't bad enough already, she also got two whippings for two small offenses. The first was in was because she left the light in the kitchen burning over night. She normally wouldn't have been caught, but her owner woke up in the middle of the night to have a midnight snack. It was particularly nasty, being awoken in the middle of the night for a whipping. The second time was when she tripped while she was carrying a bucket of dirty water she used to clean the library. She could have cleaned it up without her owner noticing, but he saw the entire thing.

During the month the outside temperature started dropping rapidly, but the days remained long. It appeared that New Nevada had a midsummer winter, like West Wyoming. Her owner cursed the "haywire weather control system", before he ordered Maka to bring him his thicker coat when he was about to head out. Maka never mustered the courage to ask what the "haywire weather control system" was, he always seemed to be in a bad mood when he mentioned it, so she didn't want to risk getting in trouble by bringing it up.

One morning, after she had prepared breakfast, she was standing in her owner's dining room, waiting for him to finish eating so that she could go and eat for herself. She started to feel a tickling in her nose. While her owner ate, the tickling got worse, she was going to sneeze. Eventually, she did sneeze, in her hand, since her father had taught her that it was unhygienic and rude to just sneeze into the air.

"Sneeze into your elbow the next time", said Dr. Evans, "if I catch you sneezing into your hand again, I'll whip you".

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Go and wash your hands", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the kitchen to wash her hands. Over the course of the day, she sneezed ever more, but she took care to sneeze into her elbow, she didn't want to get a whipping. The sneezing became more and more frequent over the day. She also started to feel a light burning in her throat, itching like a mosquito bite. Despite all of this, she served her owner's lunch at the usual time. He seemed to be satisfied with the meal, as usual. During the afternoon, Josef K. visited. He talked with Dr. Evans about finances, about stuff that Maka did not understand. Then there was a knock on the door. Tim was at the door.

"Hello, Maka, my master sends this book to your master", said Tim, handing her the book with the eye.

"Thanks, do you need written confirmation?", asked Maka.

"No, not necessary", said Tim, "Goodbye". Maka went into the living room, where Dr. Evans and Josef K. were playing chess. They used some kind of clock, it had two displays, only one of which was moving at one time. Each time one of them made a move, that one pushed a button on the clock, causing the other display to move. Maka didn't think that disturbing them during their match would be good idea, so she waited patiently until they finished, doing her work in the meantime. Each time she checked back the match had progressed further. She checked back and saw that both Dr. Evans and Josef K. had only a few pieces left, a few officers and a few pawns. It appeared to be Josef K.'s move. His remaining knight killed one of Dr. Evans pawns, before he pushed the button on the clock. Dr. Evans looked at the board, he seemed to be thinking extensively. When Maka came back half an hour later, nothing had changed. Eventually Dr. Evans tipped his king over. Maka wondered why he had given up just because he lost a pawn. They were expendable.

"Master, Dr. Blackstar has sent you the book back", said Maka, handing him the book.

"Could I see?", asked Josef K.

"Sure", said Dr. Evans, handing him the book. Josef K. opened the book.

"Interesting", said Josef K.

"You can read it?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It's written in the language of the dead", said Josef K, "Only those who know of the secrets of live and death can read it".

"And you know these secrets?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes", said Josef K.

"And what's this book about?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It has been written by the female necromancer Samantha", explained Josef K., "It is an essay discussing the book 'live of Samantha', her fourth autobiography".

"Wait, she wrote her autobiography, and then she wrote a book about her autobiography?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Most books written by necromancers are either about themselves or about the books they have written about themselves", explained Josef K.

"And where did you learn the secrets of live and death?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I found them in some book I read", said Josef K.

"And that book had normal writing?", asked Dr .Evans, "Where is it now".

"Yes,", said Josef K., "I think it was a library book, but I forgot its title".

"My father's favorite sex slave is called Samantha, too", said Dr. Evans. He didn't really seem to be interested in the essay about the necromancer's autobiography.

"What does she look like?", asked Josef K. They then went on to discuss Samantha, and how good she was in bed. Maka wished they would continue to talk about the secrets of live and death. Then she coughed. Dr. Evans and Josef K. both looked at her.

"Get back to work", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. An hour later, Josef K. left. In the evening, Maka served breakfast at the usual time and a short while later she was allowed to retire for the evening.


	110. Sick

The next morning her throat felt as if it was on fire. Her nose was stuffed. She needed water. She got out of bed and immediately began to feel as if the room was spinning around itself. Her head felt as if it was stuffed with straw. She felt extremely cold, so she put on her dress, but she still felt extremely cold. Her entire body ached. She went into the kitchen and drank the tap water greedily. She had a taste of slime in her mouth. Then she entered a coughing spasm. She cough painfully, for what seemed like an eternity, but what she later found out were only two minutes. She began preparing her owner's breakfast, her body aching at every move. Her brain felt like it hit the walls of her skull at every move. And she felt cold, terribly cold. After she had prepared breakfast, she sat down on a chair, she would get up once she heard her owner coming downstairs. She had almost forgotten to prepare tea, but she remembered it just in the nick of time and went to prepare tea. Her owner came downstairs just as she was serving the tea.

"Come here", ordered her owner. Maka assumed he wanted to slap her across the face for some imagined offense. But she still went obediently to her owner, who put the hand on her forehead.

"You're practically glowing", said Dr. Evans, "Go to your quarter and lie down".

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She went into her quarter and got back into bed. She didn't bother to take her dress of, since she felt so cold. A short while later her owner entered. She wanted to get up, but he softly held her down. Her owner showed her a short glass tube with a small bulb at one end. This tube was also partially filled with a red liquid.

"Open wide", ordered her owner. Maka opened her mouth. Dr. Evans shoved the glass tube under her tongue and closed her mouth. On the glass tube was a scale with numbers.

"Hold it there until I come back", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", mumbled Maka, almost incomprehensible. Maka obediently held the glass tube in her mouth. The liquid slowly crawled up the tube. She wondered how high it would go. What would happen if it reached the top? Something told her that she wouldn't want to find out. The liquid slowed down and eventually stopped, for which Maka was very glad, even though she didn't know what this liquid represented. Her owner came back and took the glass tube from her mouth.

"Thirty eight degrees", said Dr. Evans, "If you don't get better soon, I'll go and call a doctor". Maka wondered if she should get back to work now?

"Should I get back to work now, master?", asked Maka.

"No, stay and rest", said her owner, "you're relieved from your duties until you get better".

"Thank you, master", said Maka. Her owner left the room and Maka rolled over and tried to get some sleep. The fact that she couldn't breathe through her nose made it difficult. She had to breath through her mouth, but doing that caused her throat to itch more. After an hour of unsuccessfully trying to fall asleep, Maka went to drink water. Her owner saw her and commented on how important it is to drink plenty of water when one has a fever. He then told her to fill an empty bottle with water and take it to her quarter, a piece of advice Maka was very thankful for, so she followed it.

At one o'clock, she realized that she had forgotten to cook her owner's lunch, she would be in trouble. But then she realized that if she was indeed in trouble for that, she would already have been whipped. A whipping would be the last thing she needed now, it would make her sickness even worse. How long would it take until she got better? Maybe she would die from this. She wouldn't be the first, and she felt miserable. But she always felt that way when she was sick. It would have to get a lot worse before the disease would do her in. It was probably just a cold. She would not die. Like she didn't die the last time she was sick. She turned around and tried to get some sleep, but sleep didn't find her.

"How are you doing?", asked her owner, sitting down on her bed.

"I feel horrible, master", said Maka. Her owner put his hand on her forehead.

"You seem even hotter than in the morning", said her owner, "I'll go fetch the thermometer". A short time later he came back with the the glass tube. Maka didn't need to be told to open her mouth this time. She held the thermometer until the liquid stopped moving, then her owner removed the thermometer.

"Half a degree more", said her owner, "If it climbs any more until tomorrow, I'll call a doctor". Maka didn't know exactly how dangerous a fever was, but she knew that high was bad when it came to fevers. Hopefully it would decrease. Her owner left the room. Maka emptied the bottle. The water felt so good. But she was sweating so much, she was properly losing it faster than she could drink it. She got out of bed and went into kitchen. Unwashed dishes piled up next to the sink. She would have to clean them, later. Now she had to drink. She turned on the tap and drank greedily. The water couldn't come out fast enough. She didn't know how, but she managed to sate her thirst. She filled up her bottle. Her owner suggested she take more bottles. She did. She went back into her quarter, almost dropping one of the bottles on the way. She got back into bed and tried to get some sleep. It was at that moment that she realized that she hadn't eaten anything today, but she still wasn't hungry. Then she tried to find some sleep once again. But she couldn't. If her nose only wasn't stuffed.

"It could be worse", said the pink pony, "you could be having fever hallucinations".


	111. Fever party

"Who are you?", asked Maka.

"Silly me, I am a fever hallucination", said the pink pony. Looking at it closer, Maka saw that it had some sort of brand on it's flank. Three colorful ellipses, tied to strings.

"I'm not an it", complained the pink pony cheerfully.

"I'm sorry...", said Maka, was this a filly or a colt, "sir, please don't tell my master".

"Don't worry", said the pony, "I'm a mare, by the way".

"I'm sorry, madam", said Maka, "Why are you here?".

"I don't care", said the pink pony.

"But I do", said Maka.

"Let's party!", exlaimed the pink pony. Maka's quarter was filled with floating round objects on strings, like the one on the pony's flank, additionally there were long colorful strips of paper. Maka had to admit that this looked great.

"I'm glad that you like them", said the pink pony, "I was a bit worried you wouldn't like them, but you do! So it's perfect!". Maka felt honored. This pony had gone to so much trouble to make her happy. Tortured, high pitched screams filled the air.

"Oh, looks like the guests are here", said the pink pony. It went over to the door, and opened it with it's mouth. A young woman in a white dress entered. She had wings. And a halo. She was an angle. She was followed by Louis K. Behind Louis K. walked a elegantly dressed red horned man. A demon. He was follewed by a smaller demon with gigantic head. Do all demons wear suits?

"Yes, they do", said the large demon. After the two demons an elephant entered. He was cyan. His trunk was a snake. The elephant was followed by a Meme, who entered arm in arm with Marie. These two were followed by Louise, who was followed in turn by a dwarf with a hammer. The dwarf was followed by a similarly sized yellow cylindrical creature with only one eye. This creature was followed by a large white rabbit. The rabbit wore a cylinder and carried a cane and came accompanied by a young female slave. These two were followed by a large amphibian gorilla, who was accompanied by an ordinary purple gorilla, who was ordinary, except for the fact that he was purple. He seemed to be the last guest.

"Let's get this party started", said the pink pony and went over to a large device and put a needle down on a spinning plate. A young girl's crying filled the air. The party goers began to dance immediately. Louis K. asked Louise for a dance. The white rabbit danced with the yellow cylindrical creature. The dwarf danced with the elephant. The demon with the angle.

"The buffet is opened", said the pink pony, removing a blanket from a table. The main course was Ms. Nakatsukasa, who was tied at hands and feet, spreadeagled. At her head stood a large fountain with a red liquid, with some wine glasses next to it. Louis K. went over and got himself a good slice of her upper thigh. Ms. Nakatsukasa screamed in pain. The pink pony went over to her and bit one of her breasts off.

"This cake is delicious!", exclaimed the pink pony. Meme cut Ms. Nakatsukasa's fingers off.

"Sorry, misstress, but you're just so delicious", said Meme.

"Maybe Maka wants a piece", said Louise.

"Let's bring her one", said Louis K, who had gotten himself a glass of the red liquid, Maka hoped it was wine. Ms. Nakatsukasa was writhing in pain. Louise cut Ms. Nakatsukasa's nose off and stabbed her eyes out, before putting these things on a plate. She brought these things to Maka.

"I'm sorry, madam, I'm not hungry", said Maka.

"Eat up", said Louise, forcing her mouth open and pushing Ms. Nakatsukasa's eyes and nose down her throat, "This is your party after all". Maka wanted to spit it out, but she couldn't. On a positive note, Ms. Nakatsukasa tastes like cake, her nose tasted kinda like a marble cake, her eyes were a pleasant mix between sweet and sour. Maka wondered why they threw a party for her.

"Your fever has shattered your mind to pieces", said the pink pony, "You're on the brink of death, who knows how much time you have left. So enjoy yourself".

"I want to live", whispered Maka.

"Where do you think she'll end up, Aria?", asked the demon.

"I don't know yet. But probably at your place, Jasper", said the angel.

"I have just the thing in mind for her. She'll love it", said Jasper, "That means I'll love it, it'll be horrible for her, and will net ever end. Never ever".

"Oh, what do you have in mind?", asked Aria.

"Wait and see", said Jasper.

"Come on, you can tell me", said Aria.

"I'll only tell you that it involves the pear of agony", said Jasper, "Three of them, at once".

"Oh, Jasper, you're a genius", said Aria.

"I learned from Louise", said Jasper.

"The devil dips his hat to me", said Louise. Aria and Jasper then proceeded to make out. They fell to the floor, making out. They rolled under Maka's bed, pulling each other's clothes off on the way. The amphibian gorilla began to dance with Meme. The pink pony took a bite out of Ms. Nakatsukasa's foot. Despite the fact that it had already been severed, Ms. Nakatsukasa felt the pain. It was at this moment that Maka noticed that Ms. Nakatsukasa seemed to be able to control her severed limbs. But she moved like they were still attached, which is to say still restrained. All the guest seemed to have gotten a piece of her now, so she got a reprieve. Not a single one of her limbs was still complete, even though her legs seemed to be most popular. Her breast's were missing, along with several pieces of her stomach. Her head was mostly intact, but her face was badly mutilated, her upper lip had been cut off. Most of her teeth had been pulled. Louis K went up to her. He pinched her in an intact section of her legs.

"You know, the leg is my favorite", said Louis K.

"Please don't hurt me", begged Ms. Nakatsukasa, almost incomprehensible, while struggling against her restraints.

"You are the cake", said Louis K., grabbed the knife and cut a slice of her leg, which caused Ms. Nakatsukasa to scream in new pain.

"Maka hasn't had any of the lips yet", observed Louis K., "I'll bring her some". He cut of Ms. Nakatsukasa's remaining lip and brought them to Maka.

"Thanks sir", said Maka, "But I'm not hungry".

"Nonsense", said Louis K. "eat up", forcing the lip into Maka's mouth. It tasted like a strawberry.

"Come to me", said the pink pony to Maka, "Give me your flesh. It will be your sacrifice. Your agony will be my pleasure, your death my delight. Your skin, so niece and soft, give it to me in one piece, I'll make myself a dress from it. Stab out your eyes, rip out your heart. Silence its beat. Let your life flow into me. I will reward you. I'll give you immortality. My kingdom will come. My will be done. You'll be the first and all will follow. I'll give you immortality. Your service will be the price. I'll take away the colors and give you darkness in return". Maka picked up a knife from her nightstand and shakily put it onto her skin, wondering where to start.


	112. Eyes

Maybe it would be good to start with the left arm, since she was right handed. Or maybe with her legs. Maka didn't really know how to skin herself effectively. And how would she keep her skin in one piece? Was the pink pony telling the truth?

"How are you doing?", asked Dr. Evans.

"The pink pony threw me a party, master", mumbled Maka. Dr. Evans went up to her and jammed a knife into her mouth. Maka tried to fight back, but couldn't manage to achieve anything. Dr. Evans probably didn't even knew she tried to fight back. Louis K. shared a drink with the cyan elephant. Marie danced with the purple gorilla. The blood flowed up the blade and started to drip onto the ceiling. Dr. Evans looked at the blood with a scared look on his face. He pulled the knife from her mouth and ran out of the room. Louis K. helped himself to another piece of Ms. Nakatsukasa. She hadn't tried any leg by now, and there was almost nothing left of her legs. If she wanted a piece of her leg, she would have to act now. No, she couldn't eat another human being, that would be wrong, and it would be cannibalism. Maka knew that cannibalism was wrong. She wondered why her owner had jammed a knife into her mouth. And why didn't it hurt? Not that she wasn't glad that it didn't hurt, but the lack of pain was very unexpected.

"Hold on, the doctor's on his way", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans put a white rag onto her forehead. It was freezing cold, as if he had put a block of ice on there. But it felt strangely pleasant, like a soft kiss by a mother. Maka then remembered that her mother was dead. She never met her mother. But Meme's mother had kissed her on the forehead once, before she was sent to reformative labor. Maka assumed this counted. Dr. Evans held a bottle up to her lips.

"Drink", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka drank. This stuff was delicious and refreshing. It was as sweet as ambrosia. No, better than ambrosia. Maka drank it down greedily. The bottle was eventually emptied. She wanted another one. Maybe the pink pony could give her one. But were was the pink pony? She couldn't see it anywhere. Louis K. was gone, too, as was Meme and Ms. Nakatsukasa. The crying had stopped, too. Where was everybody, only her owner was still there. Wait, the angle and the demon had rolled under her bed, maybe they were still there. She would have to take a look. She tried to get out of bed. Dr. Evans held her down.

"Don't get up, you need to rest", said Dr. Evans. Then there was a knock on the door.

"Wait here", ordered Dr. Evans' father. Dr. Evans then left the room, leaving her alone with his father.

"We'll have some fun, you and I", said Dr. Evans father. Maka wanted to get up, but Dr Evans father held her down. He pressed his lips unto hers and intruded with his tongue. He touched her naked breast and started to massage them.

"Time to move on to the main act, isn't it?", asked Dr. Evans' father, "By the way, my name is Seth, I want you to scream it while I nail you. Tell me how much you enjoy my nail in your little hole". A large black spider entered the room. It was gigantic for a spider, large black and hairy. Seth screamed out in terror and stumbled backwards into the wall, where he foamed into a pool of blood.

"No! Get away from me! Don't eat me!", screamed Maka while trying to fight the spider of. The spider held her down with two of its legs. It would now bite her and liquify her organs. Then it would suck her dry, leaving a dry and empty husk. The spider put its head onto her chest and listened. It wanted to know where the best organs were. How long would the liquification process take? Would it be painful? It would probably be excruciatingly painful. The spider then bit her before it left. Maka had to get medical treatment as soon as possible. Taking all her strengh, she got out bed. She collapsed to the floor. Her organs must already be melting, but she wouldn't give up so easily. She crawled out of her quarter.

The corridor was filled with floating eyes, all staring at her. The eyes became bloodshot. They started to twirl around, forming a crimson cloud of eyes. The cloud gave birth to a creature. It changed its form continuously, but Maka could make out four eyes, and two mouths. The creature came towards her, growing, becoming larger on the way. Maka scrambled backwards away from the creature, screaming in fear and terror. Why would no one come to help her? Worms were growing from the creatures body, only to be reabsorbed moments later. Maka collided with the wall. There was no escape. The creature send out tentacles. One tentacle grabbed Maka's right hand, one her left hand, one her left foot and one her right foot. The creature effortlessly lifted her off the ground. Was it going to eat her. It carried her into its lair, where it put her onto an sacrificial altar. She tried to get up, but she couldn't. She tried to roll of, but she couldn't. She was restrained at her hands. There was no escape.

The creature ripped its chest open, revealing its heart. Tentacles grew forth from its heart. One of the tentacles went into her mouth. Another onto her chest. The tentacle in her mouth tasted bitter, with a nauseating tone of sweet, then it started to taste like vomit. The creature withdrew its tentacle from her mouth, causing Maka to cough and gag violently. The creature removed its tentacle from her chest. Then the creature bore a third tentacle into her chest. Maka's vision began to cloud over. Everything went dark. The light began to fade. And then it was dark.


	113. Treatment

Maka walked through the darkness. There was nothing. No light, nothing to feel, nothing to bump into, nothing to hear. Was she dead? If this was what it was it like to be dead, then being dead would get boring pretty much immediately. Maka tried to sit down, but she fell through the floor. Has there ever been a floor? She began floating in the air. Was there even air? Eventually she was standing on both feet again. Where was she? Maybe the monster had eaten her soul and she was being digested right now. It was a possibility. But if she was being digested, wouldn't there be some digestive fluids or something similar? Maybe she was just asleep. No, the monster had basically ripped into her heart, she was either dying or already dead. Then she started to hear voices.

"Is she going to make it?", asked a voice.

"She's dead Jim", said a voice.

"I don't know", said a voice. The voices remained silent.

"She looks delicous, can we cook her?", asked a voice, "can we, daddy, please".

"Rejoice, the almighty Dr. Blackstar has discovered that you left your door open!", shouted a voice.

"Want some tea?", asked a voice.

"I'll have her blood", said a voice.

"Sure", said a voice.

"What's up with your slave?", asked a voice.

"She's going to be crucified for getting ill, I just want her to be healthy so that she lasts a while", said a voice.

"She probably just pretending", said a voice, "they try that sometimes".

"That's why I'll pull out her toe- and fingernails first", said a voice.

"I don't know how to simulate forty one degrees fever", said a voice.

"Maybe you should just take her to the field of repentance and put a bullet in her brain", suggested a voice, "Would be quicker".

"You're quite a bore", said another voice

"Let's have a party", shouted the pink pony's voice. Maka looked around. The pink pony was standing behind her. She could see it despite the darkness.

"Where am I?", asked Maka.

"I have no idea", said the pink pony, "maybe we should ask someone".

"There is nobody around to ask!", shouted Maka.

"You're in the basement of Nqwjkr", said Richard. If Richard was here, Dr. Eisenberg had to be here aswell.

"I'm here", said Dr. Eisenberg. Maka slashed Dr. Eisenberg's throat. Dr. Eisenberg collapsed choking on the floor, blood gushing from his throat in an never ending fountain. The blood started to fill the room. It went up to her ankles, and showed no signs of stopping. Richard was looking on disinterested. The blood reached halfway up her chins. She began to run, there had to be a way out. She tripped, since she had been chained to the floor. She got up, the blood was at her knees now. She tried to remove her shackle, but it seemed to be padlocked. Where was the key? The blood reached halfway up her thighs now. Maybe she could rip the chain. She struggled desperately, she couldn't rip the chain. The blood reached to her hips. Maybe somebody else had the key. But were was everyone else? The blood reached up to her bellybutton now, and it rose without stopping or slowing down. As she struggled desperately, it reached her chest. Then her nipples. Then her neck. Then her mouth. Then she had to cock her head back to breath and stand on her tiptoes. She got one last desperate breath as the air began to elude her. Maybe she could swim up. No, she couldn't, she was glued to the ground. Holding her breath became difficult, so she exhaled and took a deep breath. It was like air. She began to swim in the blood. Maybe she could reach the surface.

"Sure it was a good idea to sedate her?", asked a voice.

"Absolutely, she had to get some rest", said a voice, "she has to be in top form, or she won't last on the cross".

"But when will she wake up again?", asked a voice.

"four o'clock", said a voice.

"In an hour?", asked a voice.

"Yes", answered a voice.

"Take the temperature", ordered a voice.

"Forty degrees", said a voice.

"So it's stagnant", said a voice, "she has to drink as soon as she wakes up. We have to keep her cool".

"The ascorbic acid appears to have helped", observed a voice.

"Otherwise she'd be dead right now", said a voice.

"Maybe we should just kill her", said a voice, "A bullet, then go and get a new slave".

"We could use morphine", suggested another voice, "enough of that, and she'll never wake up again".

"You guys are no fun", complained a voice. Then the voices remained silent, before they began to talk in a strange language.

"Take a piece of Ms. Nakatsukasa", said a voice, "she's delicious".

"I must agree", said a voice.

"Me too", said a voice. Maka breached the surface of the blood. She was in a room filled with several instruments of torture. She could recognize some, like the judas cradle, but other's looked like they weren't even designed to be used on humans, like the rack with four restraints on each side, for a total of sixteen. Then Louise grabbed and shackled her.

"We're going to have so much fun, you and I, so much fun", said Louise.

"Go Louise!", cheered a voice, "Show her the meaning of pain!"

"You think she'll start with the rack?", asked a voice.

"No, the she'll start with the judas cradle", said a voice, "It's twenty percent cooler".

"The temperature is rising", said a voice.

"Good idea, Louise should start with some hot irons", said a voice.

"I'll start with something simple", said Louise, "how about the thumbscrew?".

"No!", screamed Maka, "please don't!".

"I'll secure you first", said Louise, before she chained Maka to a slap.

"Now for an all time classic", said Louise, "The Swedish drink". She pushed a funnel into her mouth so that Maka couldn't expel it, and began to pour manure into that funnel. Maka choked and gagged at first, but then began to drink the liquid greedily. Dr. Evans put the bottle down, once it was empty. He went left the room. Another man, dressed in a white coat, with black gloves, like Dr. Howell, sat at the other end of the bed. Maka was naked. He took out a jar with big black worms and placed one on her chest. Then he placed one on her arm. Then one on her other arm. She wanted to fight him off, but her hands were cuffed to the bed. He continued to put the worms on her until the jar was empty.


	114. Getting better

Maka watched the worms sit on her skin, holding on despite her shaking to get them off. What kind of worms were these? Dr. Evans replaced the cold rag on her forehead with a cold bag.

"That's a lot of leeches", commented Dr. Evans.

"Yes, we have to get some blood out", said the doctor.

"How much will each one drink?", asked Dr. Evans.

"A fifth of a liter", said the doctor. Maka counted the leeches. She then was distracted by the pink pony whinnying. The pink pony stood there, not doing anything. What did it want from her? Maka turned back to counting the leeches. There were twenty leeches sucking her blood. Why were they trying to suck her dry? At least that would mean that she wouldn't last as long on the cross.

"I'm sorry that I got sick, master", said Maka, "please don't crucify me, master". Dr. Evans and the doctor laughed.

"I'm not going to crucify you for getting sick", said Dr. Evans.

"How's the temperature now?", asked the doctor. Dr. Evans put the thermometer into Maka's mouth.

"Thirty nine degrees", said Dr. Evans. Maka still felt miserable, and now, with all these leeches sucking her blood, she felt even weaker. One of the leeches fell off. The doctor picked it up and placed it back into the jar. He did this with every leech that fell of. Maka didn't feel very different from earlier, at most a little bit weaker. She was so sick that the effect of losing four liters of blood didn't feel so bad. Which made Maka wonder how much a liter actually was.

"Master, may I ask you a question?", asked Maka weakly.

"Shoot", said Dr. Evans.

"How much is a liter, master?", asked Maka.

"This bottle can hold two liter's of liquid", said Dr. Evans, holding up the bottle he had made her drink from. It filled up with blood, then it was empty again. So Maka was in the progress of losing two of these bottles worth of blood. Quite a lot. She didn't even know it was possible to lose so much blood and survive.

"This would be all", said the doctor as he put the last leech into the jar, "Her body will now use up all the iron in her to replace the blood, which should leave the bacteria starved for iron".

"So the bacterial growth will diminish?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Yes, and their metabolism will slow", said the doctor, "That should give her a leg up".

"Thanks for coming so quickly", said Dr. Evans, "how much do I owe you?"

"I'll send the bill tomorrow. But it'll come up to about three million dollars", said the doctor, "That's without the medications. Also, keep in mind to watch her temperature carefully". If it doesn't go down by tomorrow, call me immediately".

"I wish they had tested for this dumb disease back at the slave market", said Dr. Evans.

"A single immunity test cost more than than ten slaves, so that would drive the prices up dramatically", said the doctor, "besides, ninety nine percent of the population are immune, so testing would a really dumb waste of money".

"I guess you're right", said Dr. Evans.

"I'll leave the sedative here, If she can't sleep, give her some", said the doctor, "but use it sparingly, a small drop in a glass of water will be enough, don't give her until she blacks out, that can be dangerous".

"You gave her until she blacked out", observed Dr. Evans.

"Unlike you, I have spent ten years of my life studying medicine", said the doctor, "Good bye".

"Thanks, see you soon", said Dr. Evans.

"Master?", asked Maka after the doctor had left.

"What?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Am I going to live?", asked Maka.

"I don't know, maybe", said Dr. Evans, "Where do you want to get buried if you do die? As long as it's within my ability, I'll see to it that you get laid to rest there".

"In West Wyoming, master", said Maka. Did she just make a grave mistake?

"Your homeland", said Dr. Evans, "I kinda guessed as much".

"Thank you, master", said Maka.

"Anyway, keep hydrated", said Dr. Evans and put a full water bottle on her nightstand. Then he removed her handcuffs before he left the room.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, but he didn't hear her. Why did she get sick if so many people were immune. Was ninety nine percent really a lot? But why would the doctor have mentioned it if it wasn't a lot. Why did her owner pay so much money for her medical treatment? Then she remembered that she was worth eleven million dollars. If her treatment cost less than that, he would come out ahead. She then realized that her father could probably not have paid that much. But healthcare in West Wyoming was free. But her village's doctor was terribly equipped, and he was more of a dentist than a doctor. For example, she had never seen a jar of leeches in his office. Maka rolled over and tried to get some sleep. She regularily reached for the water bottle and took a big gulp, maybe it would keep the pink pony away. Sometimes, she could hear it whinny in the hallway, or under her bed. She wanted to get up and check, but it was always such a difficult task, and she never saw it, so she just got back to bed and got something to drink. By the time her owner came back to check on her again, the whinnying had become rare.

"Half a degree less", said Dr. Evans, "I'll give you a drop of the sedative now". He dropped a drop into a glass of water and handed it to her. Maka drank it obediently.

"Goodnight", said Dr. Evans before he left the room.

"Goodnight, master", said Maka. The light went out, her owner must have turned it of on the other side of the door, now even if she wanted to turn it back on, she couldn't. Unless she went out and turned it back on on the outside of her room. But she was getting very tired, so she simply let the sleep take over.


	115. Healthy again

Maka woke up when her owner came to check her temperature.

"Thirty eight degrees. I guess the bleeding really helped", said Dr. Evans, before he left the room. Maka drank whenever she felt any thirst, to prevent dehydration. At noon, she got hungry. It was at this time that she noticed that she hadn't eaten anything since she got sick. So she got up, she felt tired and weak, but compared to how she felt yesterday, she felt like Hercules. In the kitchen her owner was eating a soup. Maka looked at him, amazed.

"It may surprise you, but I can cook", said Dr. Evans, "If you weren't sick, I'd give you a whipping now".

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka, "may I go and eat something, master?".

"Once I'm done eating", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and went back to her quarter. Ten minutes later she went to get something to eat and to refill her water bottles. In the kitchen she noticed a pile of dishes in the sink, waiting for her to get healthy again, or at least fit enough to work. After she had eaten, her owner took her temperature once again.

"A bit less than thirty eight degrees", said her owner, "You'll be healthy again soon". Maka was happy to hear that. She hated being sick. In fact, she preferred working to being sick. In the evening, her temperature had fallen to thirty seven degrees. According to her owner, thirty six degrees is normal. Maka went to sleep content to know that she would be healthy again soon. But when her owner checked her temperature the next day, she had thirty eight degrees fever.

"I'll go call the doctor again", said Dr. Evans and left the room. A short time later, she heard a knock on the door. She could hear her owner open the door and greet the doctor. His name was Dr. Eisenbart. Maybe he was related to Dr. Eisenberg. No, that could not be, they had different last names. But both of them started with "Eisen-". Then Dr. Eisenbart entered her quarter.

"Let's see, temperature has been increasing?", asked Dr. Eisenbart.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"I'll check it myself, too", said Dr. Eisenbart. He took Maka's temperature. "Indeed, not dangerous yet, but troubling. I'll bleed her again. Take you dress off".

"Yes, sir", said Maka and took her dress off before she laid back down. Dr. Eisenbart took out another jar of leeches and started to put them on her body. He only put on fifteen leeches this time. Maka watched as the leeches sucked her blood. She could feel herself getting weaker. It was getting hard to concentrate and she got dizzy. Then she blacked out.

"How do you feel", asked Dr. Eisenbart once she woke up.

"Weak, sir", said Maka.

"That's normal", said Dr. Eisenbart, turning to Dr. Evans, he added ,"I recommend you let her have three more days of bed rest, to get over the anemia. The fever should disappear till then, too".

"Yes, doc", said Dr. Evans.

"Hope you won't need my services anytime soon", said Dr. Eisenbart as he turned to leave.

"Goodbye, doc", said Dr. Evans.

"Goodbye, sir", said Maka. Then she was left alone. Over the course of the afternoon, she blacked out sometimes, and she could swear that she was hearing the pink pony whinny again. But at least it didn't enter her quarter. When her owner came to check her temperature in the evening, he found it to have decreased back to thirty seven degrees and a half. The next morning, he found thirty seven degrees. Over the course of the day, Maka found that she had stopped blacking out and the pink pony had apparently stopped whinnying. She hoped she would never see it again, the party, while it was a nice gesture, had been extremely annoying, especially because she was trying to sleep at that time. Thinking back, she also disliked the fact that the music was people crying or getting tortured, and the fact that the cake was alive and someone she knew. Also, her fever fell over the course of the day, by the end of the day, her owner commented that he would make her get back to work now, had the doctor not prescribed bed rest for her. On the third and last day of her prescribed bed rest, Maka felt well again, apart from a bit of coughing and a stuffy nose. She began to wonder which disease she had contracted to begin with. Whatever it was, it got bad really quick and then got better just as quickly.

"Thirty six degrees", said Dr. Evans after he had taken her temperature, "You'll start working again tomorrow. Don't think I'll cut you slack because you've been sick. Understand?".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She set the alarm before she went to sleep. She started the next day by washing the now even bigger pile of dishes that had been waiting for her. Then she prepared breakfast for her owner. During breakfast, he asked her how she was feeling.

"Fine, I just got a stuffy nose and an itchy throat, master", said Maka.

"Check your temperature, just to be safe", said Dr. Evans, "The thermometer is in tho commode, in a metal case". Maka fetched the metal case and took her temperature. It read thirty six degrees. She reported back to her owner, who told her to weed the lawn.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Over the next two weeks, her nose became less stuffy and her throat less itchy, her coughing gave way to sneezing, and even that became rare. Three weeks after she had become sick, she was healthy again.


	116. Tsubaki's childhood

The weather continued to become colder over this time. So cold in fact, that a week after Maka had become healthy again, it was snowing. For Maka, this meant that she had to shovel snow. The temperatures stayed low, and it snowed every day, too, for about a week. Then the temperatures began to rise drastically. Within one week, they were higher than before. Fortunately, they stopped climbing then. Maka was once again told to stay hydrated, something she didn't really need to be told. Maka wondered how long the temperatures would stay so high. It was during this time that she was sent on another errant to Dr. Blackstar's house, where she saw that one female slave nursing her infant again. As Maka left Dr. Blackstar's mansion, she decided that she would ask Ms. Nakatsukasa about her childhood at the next opportunity.

The next time Maka had to buy bread, she went a bit late, so that she would still be able to buy rye bread, but late enough so that she could talk a bit with Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Say, Ms. Nakatsukasa", asked Maka, "Could I ask you something?".

"Go ahead", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"How was your childhood, madam?", asked Maka. Ms. Nakatsukasa exhaled deeply, seemingly trying to think of what to say.

"Interesting question", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Why do you even ask".

"I was sent to deliver a letter do Dr. Blackstar", explained Maka, "and on the way to his office, I saw a female slave nurse an infant. I'm kinda wondering about that child".

"Well, the child pretty safe for the time being. There's a huge social stigma against executing slave children", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Even the Evans wouldn't do such a thing".

"Why do you mention my master's family especially?", asked Maka, somewhat worried.

"They execute more slaves than any other family", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Please tell me you just made that up, madam", said Maka.

"No, that's true", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Just be obedient and don't try to run away, and you'll probably be fine".

"Don't worry, I will be", lied Maka, "but could you tell me about your childhood now".

"How about you tell me about your childhood first", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "I always wondered what living in West Wyoming is like".

"Well, I personally think it's great. We have free education and free healthcare", said Maka, "the crime rate is very low and taxes are also low".

"If taxes are low, then how does the government afford to give its citizens free healthcare?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa skeptically.

"The president is very smart, he has figured something out", said Maka, "anyway, there are great holidays, for example the president's birthday. These holidays were always cause for a village wide celebration. I enjoyed these holidays, especially the speeches, because they offered valuable information about the President's humble life and about the history of glorious West Wyoming".

"I guess these speeches were a great opportunity for naps", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"No, sleeping during the speeches is strictly forbidden", said Maka.

"Did they actually enforce this rule?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Meme's parents were sent to five years reformative labor without right to correspondence for yawning during one of these speeches", said Maka, "If you ask me, they deseved it".

"That probably means that they will be free once the five years are up", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "while all their neighbors...". The rest was incomprehensible.

"Actually, they both died", said Maka. Meme started to cry.

"You made Meme cry", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I'm sorry, madam", said Maka. Meme interrupted her work, she was sweeping the floor, to cry more.

"Get back to work, Meme", ordered Ms Nakatsukasa. Meme cried to much to respond. Ms. Nakatsukasa went up to Meme. She grabbed Meme by her collar and shook her a bit, telling her to pull herself together and to stop crying. Eventually, Ms. Nakatsukasa threatened Meme with a whipping if she didn't stop crying now and got back to work. Meme stopped crying and went back to work. Ms. Nakatsukasa got back behind the counter.

"I don't think a whipping would get someone to stop crying, madam", said Maka.

"She was obviously just pretending so she could slack off", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "It's something I learned during my time as a slave".

"What that what your old master did?", asked Maka.

"Actually, it's what his head butler did. Punishing the slaves is generally the head butler's or the head maid's job", explained Ms Nakatsukasa, "It's only very rarely that the head butler delegates an incident up to the master, something like that only happens when the head butler believes that the offense requires a punishment he is not allowed to hand out, like death".

"How often did it happen that your old master order an execution?", asked Maka. Ms. Nakatsukasa began to cry. Maka wondered if she had said something wrong.

"I only saw it happen once", cried Ms. Nakatsukasa, "My brother got executed for a failed escape attempt. They made me watch. After they had put up the cross, they chained me to its base, so that I had to watch him die". Meme started crying, too. Maka didn't really know whether she should just buy the rye bread and leave or whether she should try asking Ms. Nakatsukasa a bit more.

"He's in a better place now", said Maka, trying to comfort Ms. Nakatsukasa. While Maka didn't believe that herself, she heard that some people believe that there was a nice party waiting for them in the next world. Ms. Nakatsukasa's crying lost volume.

"I'm over that. I'm over that. I'm over that. I'm over that.", repeated Ms. Nakatsukasa to herself. Eventually she regained some composure.

"I would like rye bread, please", said Maka.

"That would be seven hundred fifty dollars", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka handed her the money and Ms. Nakatsukasa handed her the bread. Maka thought it would be best if she left now.

"Wait", said Ms. Nakatsukasa as Maka turned to leave, "I said I would tell you about my childhood. Well, I was born into slavery. I had to help out in the household from a very young age".

"Thanks for telling me that, madam", said Maka, "What happened if you screwed up". Ms. Nakatsukasa wiped her tears away with the sleeve of her dress.

"Whipping a slave child is immoral", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "so they just ordered my mother to spank me. During my apprenticeship, I had to kneel on a triangular piece of wood and stretch my arms out whenever I did something wrong".

"When did your old master send you to that apprenticeship, madam?", asked Maka.

"When I was nine, I finished it three years later", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "That day was one the best days in my life, I felt really proud of myself. My old master even praised me. Then I was rented to a baker. After three more years, I had earned a certification as a tradeswoman".

"What's that?", asked Maka.

"Basically a permission to run a bakery and to train apprentices", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "unfortunately, the guy who had rented me died and the bakery was closed. They couldn't find anybody who wanted to rent me, so they were wondering what to do with me".

"What happened then, mistress?", asked Meme.

"I accidentally broke a valuable vase", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "so they hanged me by my hair and let me dangle there for an entire day. That was the second worst day of my life". Maka could guess which one was the worst.

"During this day, my old master's great grandson took an interest in me", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "Three months later I got rented by another baker. Three years later, my old master died and I was set free. Get back to work, Meme".

"Yes, mistress. I'm sorry, mistress", said Meme.

"Well, thanks for telling me that, goodbye, madam", said Maka.

"Wait, I have a question", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Yes, madam?", asked Maka.

"You said that education was free in West Wyoming", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "then why can't you read?".

"Two years aren't enough to teach children to read, madam", said Maka.

"I learned to read in one year during my apprenticeship", said Ms. Naktsukasa. Maka wondered why a baker needed to read.

"Why did they teach you to read during your apprenticeship?", asked Maka.

"The guild requires it", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "anyway, goodbye".

"Goodbye, madam", said Maka, looking at the clock, she noticed that she had chatted for a bit too long.


	117. Danger of reading

When she got back to her owner's house, her owner noticed that she had taken a bit too long to buy bread, so he told her to go to her quarter, disrobe completely and fetch the whip. A short time later, he assigned her ten extra lashes because she didn't do it in that order. The rest of the day went by quietly, though. In the evening, Maka even found some time to practice reading a bit. If she wanted to learn to read anytime soon, she would have to increase her efforts, there was no telling what useful information was hidden in these books. She tried to find time to practice reading everyday. However, she didn't to find time for that each day, only about one in three days. She was very careful that her owner would not catch her, learning to read was an escape preparation, after all. Stealthily learning to read and avoiding to draw her owner's ire was problematic, and it didn't always work out. She earned four whippings over the course of one month because her owner found tasks done unsatisfactory.

"You're on thin ice", said Dr. Evans after an whipping. Maka was crying to much to respond. This earned her another lash. Maka screamed in renewed pain.

"Yes, master", cried Maka.

"If you don't start working harder, I'll sell you to a fuel farm", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", cried Maka. He gave her another lash before he released her restraints. Maka would have to put her learning attempts back a little, getting sold to a fuel farm would be a death sentence. She had heard that the slaves who worked on fuel farms only survived for five years, if they were lucky. Or unlucky, depending on how one sees it. Maka got back to work once she had regained some composure. If she wanted to learn to read without her owner noticing, she would have to do it during her free time. The only free time she had were the eight hours between being allowed to retire for the evening and having to prepare breakfast. Maka would have to sacrifice her sleep in order to learn to read. So, each night she waited until she was sure that her owner was asleep and then she tried to decipher a book she had taker from her owner's library. Her owner noticed her lack of sleep, but could not diagnose it correctly. He even measured her temperature, only to find it perfectly normal.

Eventually he took her aside to play a game of chess with him, the day after he had won what seemed to be a very important case. He let her have three free moves, played without his queen and he let her king move two fields at once. Maka knew that if he believed she was trying to lose on purpose, he would whip her. But it was Saturday morning and Maka found it hard to concentrate, since she hadn't gotten enough sleep. Her owner started out strong, Maka just hoped she could play good enough that she wouldn't get punished for it.

"You seem a bit ill", said her owner, "is something wrong?".

"I'm fine, master", said Maka. Dr. Evans took her queen. She only managed to take out the pawn who killed the queen with one of her pawns.

"You don't look fine to me", said Dr. Evans, moving his rook trough the opening left by the pawn who avenged her queen, "you seem like you don't sleep enough".

"I work very hard for you, master", said Maka. Then she saw that Dr. Evans had practically already won. In a few moves, she would be checkmate, and there was nothing she could really do. Maka moved her remaining knight.

"Checkmate", said Dr. Evans after a few moves, "That was too easy. While I didn't expect you to win, this was ridiculous".

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"Go to your quarter and disrobe completely, then fetch the whip", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka obeyed reluctantly. Her owner came into her quarter and secured her to the whipping post.

"You know, I've been thinking", said Dr. Evans, "You worked hard when I bought you, and you looked healthy. Then you started slacking off. Now you seem to forgo sleep. Obviously, you've been working on something behind my back. I demand to know what it is".

"I haven't been working on anything behind your back master", lied Maka.

"You have two options", said Dr. Evans, "a, you tell me what you're working on, or b, I'll pay Louise to figure it out for me, the choice is yours".

"I haven't been working on anything behind your back master", said Maka.

"Louise will be happy", said Dr. Evans, turning to leave the room. He tripped on the way out, collided with the doorpost and fell over backwards. Maka was somewhat impressed that something like that was possible. Dr. Evans looked under her bed. He reached under her bed and pulled out the book Maka had been trying to decipher.

"You're in trouble", said Dr. Evans, opening the book and flipping through the pages. Maka struggled desperately against the restraints. There was no doubt that she would get crucified now. Maybe he would only sell her to a fuel farm. Maybe she could convince him to sell her to a regular farm instead. No, it was hopeless, he would have her crucified, he was an Evans after all, they killed more captives than any other family. Maka began to wonder how much it would hurt to get nails stuck into her lower arms and her feet. The closest comparable experience was when she cut herself while cutting vegetables, which is actually not very comparable. But just how much would getting a nail rammed through her lower arm hurt. There was even a word to describe it "excruciating". It's so painful, they had to make up a new word to describe the pain. Maka's struggling against the restraints intensified, but the restraints didn't budge. There was nothing she could do other than to accept the fact that she would die a slow and agonizing death.


	118. Jury deliberations

"Will you tell me now why you were attempting to read 'My struggle', behind my back", asked Dr. Evans, "And why didn't you tell me you could read".

"I was trying to learn to read, master", said Maka, maybe she could convince him not to crucify her.

"I see, you wanted to learn to read so you could become head maid once I bought myself a larger house", said Dr. Evans, "While I believe this to be a noble goal, you still neglected your duties, stole my property, lied to me and deceived me".

"I'm sorry, master, please don't kill me", begged Maka.

"I'll have to think about this", said Dr. Evans, drawing his gun. He undid Maka's restraints, keeping his gun trained on her head. Then he backed out of the door and locked it behind himself, locking Maka in her quarter. She could hear him pacing around, undoubtedly he was contemplating whether he should crucify her not. Maka hoped that he would not choose to kill her. Hopefully he would do something else to her. Even getting sold to a fuel farm would be preferable, since it would give her a chance to escape, even though the cancer would drastically shorten her remaining her lifespan. She had heard that cancer was the body rebelling against its soul. It was a civil war the loyalists never won, but the rebels victory was also their doom. Maybe it was possible to avoid getting cancer on a fuel farm. She had heard that the cancer was caused by something in the plant, Josef K. had called it a carcinogen. So if she avoided the plants, she would be fine. But if she was sold to fuel farm, her main task would be tending to these plants. How could a plant so useful be this dangerous to humans? She heard that dieing of cancer was very painful, back in her village, she had once seen someone, who worked as a guard on a fuel farm. His body had bulged everywhere, sometimes the growths had even penetrated his skin. The most striking growth was one over his left eye, about twice as big as the eye itself. The tips of fingers had been amputated. His breathing was an unhealthy whistling. The man died two years later, she heard that the man was only forty. This may be her in five years.

But maybe her owner would show some mercy and only sell her to a regular farm instead. Then she would not have to worry about her body being consumed by itself. She had heard that slaves on a regular farm even lived long enough to raise a family. Another thing would be whether she would be sold to a small farm or a large farm. Small farms were usually run and worked by the owner's family and a few slaves. Large farms, on the other hand, were run by an administrator, who could be a slave or a free person, for the owner. The low ranking slaves were treated more brutally, as there was more than enough money to replace them if they died. She had heard of cases were slaves were crucified for a single wrong word, generally about the owner. Getting sold there would be preferably to getting crucified right away, though.

Maybe Dr. Evans would just sell her back to the slave market. Then she would be sold to someone else, who might treat her better, or someone who might treat her worse. Maka wondered which was more likely. Dr. Evans had most of time given her enough food, except for the one time when he gagged her. If she got sold, she might not be so lucky. She had a room to herself, Dr. Blackstar's slaves didn't, except for the head butler. Maybe Dr. Blackstar's sex slaves had a room for themselves. Maka never had to provide sexual services, unlike Samantha, even though Maka had almost been raped twice. Getting sold back to the slave market would not be a good think to happen to her. And it was extremely unlikely, since it wouldn't really be a punishment, it would only change who Maka called "master". But her owner would want probably punish her.

The worst thing that could happen to her was that she got crucified. Then she would spent the rest of her life hanging from a cross, waiting to die, while experiencing terrible agony. How likely was it that her owner would crucify her. He wouldn't gain anything by doing that to her, and he didn't seem to fond of pointless sadism. Maybe he could crucify her and then show her replacement what happened to her. Seeing Maka die in excruciating agony would scare Maka's replacement scare into behaving herself. Then Dr. Evans would have sacrificed one slave, who was plotting to escape, and gained an even a nice, scared and obedient one. But he would also loose eleven million dollars. But how much was this for him? He had once said that thirty billion was three times his yearly income. How much was a billion? Was it more than a million. Maka counted. One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, what came after ten thousand? Maybe a hundred thousand. Assuming a hundred thousand came after ten thousand, what came after hundred thousand, a thousand thousand? Or a billion, or a million? No, a billion was probably worth more than a million. A slave costs somewhere around eleven million, and Ms. Nakatsukasa could afford one, even though she said that she would have to work until she was older than her old master to earn ten billion dollars. Assuming a billion came after ten million, her owner would earn enough to replace her a hundred times a year. But she believed the billion came at least after a hundred million. If that was true, her owner could afford to buy three slaves every day. Finances would not stop Dr. Evans from killing her. From his point of view, there was no reason not to crucify Maka.

Maybe she could escape whatever lie in store for her now by breaking down the door. Maka ispected the door, if she was going to break it down, she would have to do it right the first time, there would be no second chance. Even her owner hearing her banging against the door would notify him, then he would recapture her, since he had a gun and she didn't. Could she break down the door in a single try? Probably not, this door looked like it was build to last, as if the architect had containment in mind when he designed it.

Then there was a knock on the door.

"Stand in front of the door, hands on your head and facing away form the door", ordered Dr. Evans voice. Maka didn't know whether she should obey or not. She could ambush and overpower her owner and run away when he came in, but he had apparently thought of that, too, and taken countermeasures. If she defied him now, he would get help to overpower her, and if he had decided not to crucify her, that decision would probably change. Seeing that she didn't have a chance of escape , Maka obeyed. Once she was in position, the door was opened. A handcuff was closed around her right hand, which then got pinned on her back. She could still fight back. But if she did, her owner would certainly want her dead. And it was unlikely that she would win, after all, her owner seemed to be prepared for something like that, and he had a gun. The most likely result of fighting back would be her death. Maybe that was preferable to what lay in store for her. Maybe he would just wound her, nurse her back to health and then crucify her. Dr. Evans pinned her left hand on her back and cuffed it. Her hands were cuffed behind her back. He then turned her around.

"I have made a decision", proclaimed Dr. Evans.


	119. Sentence

„Your offense was not to tell me what you were doing", said Dr. Evans, "I would have would probably have approved your actions if you had asked me. After, all, your value would increase drastically if you could read. You've have basically committed three offenses, you have taken my stuff without permission, you have neglected to inform me about your reading attempts, and you have lied to me when I asked you whether you were working on anything behind my back". Dr. Evans removed the handcuffs, Maka wondered why he had even bothered putting them on her. Then he went and secured her once again to the whipping post. Maka knew what would happen now, but she was still happy, because this meant that she probably wouldn't get crucified.

"After I'm done whipping you, you will tell me how many lashes you received", said Dr. Evans, "Then you will get additional lashes based on how far off you were". Maka shuddered, she always lost count after the first few lashes, but if she was asked to guess how many lashes she received during her last whipping, she'd say a thousand.

Dr. Evans started the whipping with a lash onto her right shoulder, causing pain to ripple from the seven strands of the whip through her body. Maka counted one. The next lash hit her left shoulder. Maka counted two and screamed in pain. The next lash landed horizontally on her lower back, not causing any interference unlike the second lash. Maka counted three and her screams continued. The next lash landed squarely in the center of her back, interfering with all previous lashes, causing her even more pain. Tears began to well up in Maka's eyes. Maka counted four. Dr. Evans delivered the next to lashes in rapid succession, almost leaving her no time to register them as individual lashes. Maka counted seven. No, that was wrong. What came after five? The next lash landed. Was it eight? No, nine. Another lash landed. What was that number Maka was wondering about? How many lashes had been delivered since she arrived at this number? Three, or was it one more. Another lash landed and Maka broke out crying. Now it was one more. Or was it two more? Another lash landed and Maka lost count completely as she screamed in pain. After the next lash she realized that she had lost track, and cried more in despair than in pain. Eventually the pain in Maka's back began to overshadow all other sensations, she had reached this hellish state of mind where there was only pain. Of course, this pain was nothing compared to what could technically be achieved, but for the moment, Maka's pain overshadowed all of her other sensations. Eventually, after Maka's crying had become quite due to a shortage of breath caused by her crying, Dr. Evans stopped.

"How often did I whip you?", asked Dr. Evans. How many lashes had Maka received? She only knew that she had lost count somewhere around five lashes. But she had counted four more lashes after she had lost count for the first time. So she received more than nine lashes. How much more? Twenty, or maybe thirty?". Maka did not know. She decided to go with forty. No, it must have been more.

"You whipped me sixty times, master", said Maka.

"Wow, exactly right", said Dr. Evans, "No, just kidding, I only whipped you thirty nine times. That makes for twenty one extra lashes". Maka's sniffling turned back into crying as she heard that, and her owner began to deliver the extra lashes. Maka didn't even try to bother counting, after all, it wasn't expected of her now. Dr. Evans stopped. Maka wondered why, this didn't feel like twenty one lashes.

"How many lashes are left?", asked Dr. Evans, "If you get it wrong, you'll get all the still outstanding lashes double". Maka didn't know. He had probably stopped halfway.

"Ten", cried Maka, "master". Dr. Evans resumed the whipping. Maka did not know whether she was right or wrong, she could barely make out the individual lashes. Then her owner stopped the whipping again. He finally removed the restraints. Maka collapsed to the floor. Dr. Evans pulled her back up by her hair, causing Maka to scream in new pain. He turned her around and restrained her once again to the whipping post, but this time with her front facing him. This forced her into a painful position as her shoulder was angled in a way a shoulder is not meant to be angled.

"Please, master, don't, show mercy", begged Maka. But her owner started to whip her immediately, causing her to scream in pain. She lost count immediately, she just hoped she would not be asked about how many lashes she had received, because she would be unable to answer. It was horrible to see the whip coming. Each time it flung her way, she was afraid it would hit her in her eye. But it never did, it only hit her in the chest or her belly. Sometimes it hit her on her upper thighs. Maka didn't really have the strength to cry much. After what felt like an eternity, the whipping was over. Dr. Evans removed the restraints.

"Come to my office in ten minutes", said Dr. Evans as he left, Maka was crying to much to respond. Eventually she was able to force herself back onto her feet, put her dress back on and walked into her owner's office, as she had been told.

"Bring me two rags", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", sniffled Maka. She went and fetched the two clean rags she kept around for such a case. Dr. Evans inserted one rag into her mouth and tied the other rag over mouth.

"My arm is sore from whipping you, massage it", ordered Dr. Evans. As Maka started to massage his arm, she was glad that she had been gagged, otherwise she would probably get another whipping right now.

"The rag will stay in for a few days", said Dr. Evans, "When I take it out, you will get another whipping, as hard as the last one".

**Dear readers,**

**I'm sorry I could not update yesterday.**

**With kind regards,**

**PicUnrelated.**


	120. Reading

Maka gave her best at massaging her owner's arm, she did not want to get into any more trouble. Dr. Evans remained silent, even though he seemed to enjoy it. Eventually he told her to stop and to get back to work. Maka wondered when he would allow her to take the gag out, as she became hungry and very thirsty, she began to long for this moment more and more. But she also feared it, because it would mean that the whipping, which was the most painful experience in her live, would repeat itself. On the first day she feared this whipping more than she longed for water and food. On the second day, she was very hungry and thirsty. The first time he had gagged her, he had allowed her to take the gag out the next day. But she doubt she would be this lucky this time. She was right. On the third day, Maka was getting madly thirsty, and she could swear that she heard a pony whinny somewhere. She would not survive much longer without water. Then she was sent to buy bread.

"Hello, Maka", greeted Ms. Nakatsukasa once Maka entered the bakery, "looks like you made someone mad". Maka nodded.

"What do you want?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka pointed at the rye bread."The rye bread, like always", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka nodded and put the money on the counter. Ms. Nakatsukasa handed her the bread and the change, Maka waved goodbye and left. When she arrived at her owner's house, she heard the whinnying again. It became more frequent as the day dragged on. Eventually, in the evening, Dr. Evans took the rag out, right before he told her to go to her quarter and disrobe. He then gave her a the same whipping he gave her three days ago. However, this time Maka guessed the amount of lashes almost correct. She guessed thirty nine, forty would have been correct. But Dr. Evans gave her twenty additional lashes because she had tried to guess the same which was the right number last time. She didn't know whether she had guessed correctly when he stopped in between the twenty one extra lashes, but she assumed that she didn't. She thought that the whipping on her chest was even worse this time. But she was probably only imagining it to be worse.

After the whipping was finally over, she noticed that she had almost shed no tears. But this had probably to do with the fact that she didn't drink for three days now. She dragged herself to the sink in the bathroom and drank the water greedily. It was refreshing, like pure ambrosia. She was very glad that she had survived this. The lack of water had been driving her crazy, but now she was all better again. She served her owner's dinners, and after he had eaten, she ate for herself. The first meal after starvation tastes good, no matter what it is.

"Come here, Maka", called Dr. Evans from the living room.

"Yes, master?", said Maka as she arrived in the living room.

"I think it would be best if you start your reading attempts with this book", said Dr. Evans, handing her a book, "If you don't understand a word you can ask me".

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She flipped through the book. It had many pictures and rather large writing.

"Start reading it aloud", ordered Dr. Evans, "Start with the first page".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She began to read. Each time she made a mistake, Dr. Evans corrected her.

"Let's make this a bit more interesting", said Dr. Evans after about half an hour, "for each mistake that you make, you get down on the ground and do five pushups".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She had thought her owner meant whiplashes when he said "more interesting". Dr. Evans counted the mistakes. When she had made her first mistake, she immediately wanted to get down on the ground to do the five pushups, but he told her to do them later. After half an hour, she was up to a hundred and sixty pushups.

"Enough for today", said Dr. Evans, "now do the pushups".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She started doing pushups. The first twenty went by easily. Then it became much more difficult. After ten more, her arms were shaking and her head felt as if was about to explode. She managed to do another ten, but then she collapsed.

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, "but what about the pushups I was unable to do?".

"Forget about them", said Dr. Evans as he walked upstairs. Maka went to sleep, too. With each reading lesson, she made less and less mistakes. As the days became shorter, and the temperature began to drop, she became more and more confident with her reading. On several occasions Dr. Evans had praised her quick learning. While outside the threes lost their leaves, on a Saturday, she managed to read for an hour without mistakes.

"No mistakes", said Dr. Evans, "You can have tomorrow off".

"Thanks master", said Maka.


	121. Travel

Maka spent her day off mostly relaxing, reading a book, a novel, to be exact. It was about a sailor who was in love with a girl. But on the day of his wedding he got arrested and thrown in jail without trial. She was very happy that she was finally able to read properly. She enjoyed reading this story. In prison, the sailor met a fellow prisoner, which whom he tried to escape, but they canceled the escape because the other prisoner got ill. This prisoner then told the sailor about a treasure, before he died. The sailor used this opportunity to escape in his friend's body bag. But then it turned out that they throw the dead into the sea. Maka had to stop reading at this point, because she got hungry. After she ate, she wanted to go back and read the book more, but Dr. Evans told her to go to bed, as she would have to get up at the usual time. Not wanting to upset her owner, even if would not punish her for going to bed late, she could be sure he would punish her for even the smallest of infractions the next morning.

The next day Maka was very carefully preparing breakfast. She feared that Dr. Evans would be stricter than usual. When he came down, he sat down at the table and began to calmly read his mail and the paper. Maka assumed that she had done everything correctly.

"Maka", called Dr. Evans, while Maka was in the kitchen.

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"I'll be going on a two week trip tomorrow, pack my suitcase", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the basement to retrieve her owner's trunk and then upstairs to pack it. After lunch, her owner came to see how she had packed the trunk.

"I need more light clothing", said Dr. Evans, "start over, tell me when you're done".

"I'm sorry master", said Maka, "yes, master". She wondered why he needed light summer clothing, when it was getting cold. Maybe he was traveling to another weather zone. It was possible that wherever he was traveling had higher temperatures this time of the year. Maka emptied the trunk, put all the clothes back where she found them and packed the trunk again. She went to inform her owner and he approved of her packing this time. Maka then went back to her usual work. In the evening, she carried the trunk down into the anteroom. The next day she prepared her owner's breakfast early, because she expected him to leave early. She would be left alone like Jonathan was regularly. This would present her with a lot of opportunities. She then happily went to clean the dishes.

"Maka", called Dr. Evans from the anteroom. Maka hurried to the anteroom.

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"Take a shower and put on a fresh dress", ordered Dr. Evans, "Tell me once you're done".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She did as she was told. After she had put her old dress in the laundry, she reported back to Dr. Evans, who inspected her, presumably to see if she was clean.

"Get back to work", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. A few minutes later, her owner called her once again.

"Turn off everything than can be turned off in this house", said Dr. Evans, "But don't go into my office. Tell me once your done.".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Two minutes later she was done and told her owner.

"Carry the trunk to the coach", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She carried the trunk to the coach, where the driver of the horse drawn coach helped her put it on the roof and secured it.

"You ride on the coach box, next to the driver", said Dr. Evans as he got into the coach.

"Yes, master", said Maka and sat down on the coach box.

"I have two rules", said the driver, "sit still and shut up".

"Yes, sir", said Maka. The driver slapped her.

"You have violated rule number two", said the driver.

"Get going!", complained Dr. Evans. Maka sat still on the coach box next to the driver. It was cold, and the coach was moving quickly towards its destination, leading to cold sharp winds blowing into her face, and unlike the driver, she wasn't dressed for the weather. She comforted herself with the fact that it wasn't raining. Then it started to rain cats and dogs. The driver's leather jacket locked like it provided decent protection against the bad weather, but Maka's dress got soaked in a matter of seconds. After about an half an hour drive, the coach arrived at its destination, a train station, by the looks of it, the town's main train station.

"How much do I owe you?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars", said the driver.

"Three hundred thousand", said Dr. Evans, handing him a couple of bills. After the driver had taken the money, Dr. Evans jumped out of the coach and ran into the train station. The driver removed the trunk from the roof of the coach and handed it to Maka, who carried it to Dr. Evans. He then went to a ticket window and bought train tickets, first class for himself, third class for Maka. Total cost two million dollars. He payed with a couple of bills.

Maka carried the trunk behind her owner until he found himself a bench on the station platform and sat down to wait for the train. Maka put down the trunk and waited for the train, too. After a while, the train arrived. Dr. Evans boarded the train, Maka behind him. He went to his place on first class. Samantha had told the truth, these were really small apartments.

"Leave the trunk here", said Dr. Evans, "take this". He handed her her train ticket and a document. Maka went to find the seat designated on the ticket. After she had sat down at her seat in her wet clothing, she took some time to read the document. It simply stated that Maka was accompanying her owner on his train journey, and that he was visiting a town called New Vegas, and that he was staying for two weeks. Maka assumed she would have to show this if somebody suspected her of being a runaway slave.


	122. Soul visits his parents

"Ticket please", said the conductor after the train had started to move, seeing her collar, he added, "and travel permit".

"Here, sir", said Maka, showing him the ticket and the letter her owner had written. The conductor read the punched a hole into the ticket and read the letter, then he handed her both back.

"Your master told me to tell you to come to his train wagon".

"Thanks, sir", said Maka. Then she got up and made her way to her owner's train wagon.

"You wanted to see me, master?", asked Maka.

"Go to the food wagon and buy me something to eat", said Dr. Evans, handing her some money.

"What would you like, master?", asked Maka.

"Some grapes", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went into the food wagon and bought grapes and brought them back to her owner. She found him lying on his bed.

"Feed them to me", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka plucked a grape from the vine and dropped it into her owner's open mouth. She repeated that several times.

"That's not as great as I thought it would be", said Dr. Evans, "I'll just eat it myself".

"Yes, master", said Maka and handed him the vine of grapes. Dr. Evans began to eat the grapes by himself.

"Disrobe completely", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She took her dress of and hung it over a chair. On one hand, she was glad that she could get out of her wet dress, on the other hand, she feared what her owner wanted to do to her. He, however, ate his grapes in total silence. Maka looked out the window at the passing New Nevada landscape. The train began to pass trough a forest, then a tunnel. Maka wondered how these tunnels had been build, since it looked like it would take a long time to dig through the rock. Something hit her on the head. It was the vine of grapes, now just a vine. Maka picked it up and put it into a rubbish bin. Her owner took a book from the coat and began to read. Maka wondered if she would be allowed to go back to her seat anytime soon. At noon, he told her to go and order food in his name from the food wagon. Maka put her dress back on and did as she was told. He ate and left two sandwiches for Maka. A short time later a slave came by and collected the dishes. Dr. Evans went back to reading his book. In the evening, Dr. Evans ordered dinner. After he had eaten, he send Maka back to her seat. Sitting there, Maka wondered how long it would take until the train would arrive at its destination. Eventually Maka fell asleep.

When she woke up the next morning, the train was still driving. She was worried that it had already passed New Vegas and that her owner would be angry at her, or even consider her a runaway. On the other hand, being on a train bound for somewhere far away would make escape pretty easy. But she didn't know where the train was headed, but her owner probably did. She decided to look whether her owner was still on the train. She went into to this wagon, she arrived just before he left his wagon.

"Good, go and order my breakfast", he ordered, handing her some money. Maka went to the food wagon and ordered her owner's breakfast. A short time after he had eaten his breakfast, the train stopped at a station. It was then announced that they had indeed arrived in New Vegas. Dr. Evans ordered her to carry his suitcase and departed the train, giving the slave who arrived at the wagon to collect the dirty dishes a generous tip. Maka wondered why he never tipped her. One thing she immediately noted about New Vegas was that the weather was indeed a lot warmer than back in New Death City. Dr. Evans went trough the station and hailed a horse drawn carriage. He gave the driver a adress and got into the carriage, making Maka ride on the couch box once again. But it wasn't so bad this time, because the weather was good. The coach traveled through the city and eventually arrived at a large mansion. Dr. Evans rung a bell on the gate. A short while later a well dressed slave came and asked who was there.

"Dr. Soul Evans", said Dr. Evans, "Tell my father I'm here".

"Yes, young master", said the slave. He then went inside the mansion again. Five minutes later he came back out and opened the door for Dr. Evans, who then entered. He followed the slave, who led him to the living room of the mansion, where Dr. Evans' father was waiting. Next to him was a woman, at least twenty years younger than him. On couch opposite of them sat a man in roughly Dr. Evans age.

"Welcome my son!", said Dr. Evans' father, getting up and hugging his son. After he was released from the hug, Dr. Evans turned to the woman and shook her hand.

"Hello mother", said Dr. Evans.

"Hello Soul", said his mother. He then went to hug the man in his age.

"Hey Wes, long time, no see!", said Dr. Evans.

"Good to see you!", said Dr. Evans.

"Anyway, where do I stay", asked Dr. Evans.

"Samuel!", called Dr. Evans' father, a slave, dressed in a elegant suit entered the room.

"Yes, master", asked Samuel.

"Help my son settle in his room", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, master", said Samuel.

"Actually, just show Maka where it is so she can unpack for me, I'll find it later", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, young master", said Samuel. Maka followed him out of the room.

"I'll conduct the roll call first", said Samuel to Maka. She followed him into what appeared to be the servant quarters, where all the slaves were already waiting, standing in rows. He called their names and they responded with "Here!". After a he had finished with the roll call, he led Maka to the guest rooms.

"May I ask you a question?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Samuel.

"How often do you conduct a roll call?", asked Maka.

"Normally once a day in the evening", said Samuel, "but Samantha ran away yesterday, so Dr. Evans ordered that I conduct three roll calls a day".


	123. Standing

"She did?", asked Maka.

"Yes, how do you know her?", asked Samuel.

"Your master visited my master and took her along", said Maka.

"I see" said Samuel.

"What will happen to her if she is caught?", asked Maka.

"Think about it", said Samuel, "What would happen to you if you tried to run away?".

"I'd get crucified", said Maka.

"Exactly", said Samuel, "Anyway, this will be your master's room".

"Thanks", said Maka as she put the trunk down and started unpacking. Once she had finished, she went back down into the living room, where her owner was still chatting with his father. His mother seemed to have left the room in the meantime. They continued chatting for a while.

"Samuel!", called Dr. Evans, once Samuel entered the room, he immediately added, "Get Maka here something to do".

"Yes, young master", said Samuel. He then took out a small book and flipped through the pages, then he put the book away again and told Maka to follow him. He brought her into the mansion's basement, where he told her to clean the wine cellar and to report back for more work once she was done. Maka cleaned the wine cellar, but decided to look around instead of reporting back for more work. Most of the rooms in the basement were pretty mundane. Store rooms, some containing random junk, other food. Then she found a corridor with ten doors on each side, each door directly next to the other door, with almost no empty space between them. In each door was some kind closeable silt, all of them were closed. Nineteen of these doors where open, but one of them was closed. Maka looked behind one of the open doors. It seemed to be some sort of small closet. The other doors also had a small, empty closet behind them. The one closed door intrigued Maka. She put her ear to it. She could hear someone breathing behind the door. Maka knocked on the door. No reply.

"Hello?", asked Maka, knocking again.

"Please stop, you'll get me into trouble", said a male voice from behind the door.

"Why are you in there?", asked Maka.

"Just shut up, you'll get me into trouble", said the voice. Maka left the room and decided to go up to find Samuel to ask for more work and maybe about this room with the twenty small closets. She began to search through the slave quarters. She came across her owner, who was hugging an elderly female slave.

"Who is she?", asked Maka another slave who was walking past her.

"Nora, his old governess", said the slave before he walked away. Then Samuel entered the room from another side.

"I've cleaned the wine cellar", said Maka.

"Took you long enough", said Samuel.

"May I ask a question?", asked Maka.

"Yes, you may", said Samuel.

"What is that room with all of these doors?", asked Maka.

"Didn't I tell you to clean the wine cellar and report right back?", asked Samuel, "I would punish you, but I'm not sure I have jurisdiction over you".

"How about you show Maka what the 'room with the doors' is for", suggested Dr. Evans.

"Excellent idea, young master. I'll get right on that", said Samuel, turning to Maka he added, "You come with me". Maka obeyed reluctantly, since she knew that disobedience would ensure her demise.

"Disrobe completely", ordered Samuel once they had arrived in the room with the doors. Maka undressed.

"The sandals, too", said Samuel. Maka took of her sandals.

"Stand in one of the rooms there", said Samuel, pointing at the side where all the doors where open. Maka obeyed. Then Samuel closed the door, leaving Maka in claustrophobic darkness.

"If you want to get out anytime soon, you'll be quiet", said Samuel, "Have fun". Maka leaned against the wall. The room was to small to move around or even sit down. She would have to stand until they eventually let her out. Maka began humming West Wyoming's National anthem to herself to pass the time. Then she hummed one the many songs her owner had played on the piano. She began to get tired from standing up, she wanted to sit down, but the closest she could get to sitting down was a crouch, with her knees at the front door and her back up against the wall. She her knees were not angled very far, she was maybe twenty centimeters smaller than when she was standing upright. Maka began humming again. Eventually, her knees started to hurt, so Maka stood up again, making her knees hurt even worse. Then she leaned backwards against the wall. When would they let her out? She tried to turn around, but the room was to small to do that. Maka leaned on the side wall to her right. It was horrible in this small room, she would rather have gotten a whipping. So she decided to try and sleep. But she had never slept standing upright. Was it even possible? Probably if one was tired enough. Maka tried to find a suitable sleeping position for hours, but standing upright made it near impossible to find one. Then she had to pee badly. Not having any other choice, she urinated where she was standing. The smell quickly filled the small room. Eventually, Maka got used to it. She continued to try and find a suitable position.

"Food", said a voice and opened the slit in the door, handing a small loaf of bread through, followed by a water bottle.

"Drink the water and give me the bottle back", said the voice, "Or you'll be in here for much longer". Maka quickly drank the water and handed the bottle back. The slit was closed again, leaving Maka once again in complete darkness. Maka went back to trying to fall alsleep. When she woke up, her knees where at the door, her buttocks at the rear wall and her face on the door, which caused her a pain in the neck. Her whole body was aching. What time was it? How long had she been asleep? Was the meal they brought her lunch, or dinner? It could be already evening, or depending on how long it took her to fall asleep, already morning. She had lost her feeling for time.

**Dear readers,**

**I might be unable to update tomorrow.**

**With kind regards,  
PicUnrelated  
**


	124. Ragnarok

When the door was finally opened, Maka fell right out of the door.

"I only left you in there overnight", said Samuel, "Clean up the cell you just occupied, take a shower and get dressed, then report for roll call. Here's your dress back,". Maka forced herself to get up. Standing was difficult, but she could manage. She started to look for the shower. In her owner's house, it was in the basement, but she didn't knew where it was here. Maybe in the slave quarter's. She went upstairs. Once she was there, she decided to ask another slave.

"Excuse me, where's a shower I could use?", asked Maka.

"Just over there", said the slave, pointing at a door. Maka went through the door and found a communal shower. She went to an empty shower head and let the cold water flow over her head. She thoroughly cleaned her feet. Once she was done, she took a towel to dry herself and asked another slave about cleaning supplies. She fetched the cleaning supplies and went downstairs again to clean the dried urine left in the cell. She was very happy that she finally got out of there. Then she realized that the other door was still closed. So whoever was behind there would have to spend even more time in these extremely small cells. She was glad that she wasn't him. Maka got dressed and got back upstairs to report for roll call.

When she arrived upstairs, Samuel had just left his room and seemed to be preparing for roll call. Maka followed him. He gestured for her to stand near the edge of the room, as the rest of the slaves lined up for roll call. He called each of their names, and they responded each with a "here". Then he sent them to do their respective work. Then he told Maka to help out in the yard, so Maka went outside into the yard, where one slave was weeding the lawn.

"Samuel says I have to help you", said Maka.

"Then go and weed the lawn", said the slave.

"Okay", said Maka and started to weed the lawn.

"You look horrible", said the other slave, "Bad night's sleep?".

"I spent the night in one of these small rooms in the basement", said Maka.

"You mean the standing cells?", asked the slave, "I once spent a whole week in one. I'm Stephanie, by the way".

"One week?", asked Maka in disbelief.

"The real question is, how did you manage to only get one day", said Stephanie.

"Well, my master, who is your master's son, told Samuel to get me something to do," explained Maka, "Samuel then told me to clean the wine cellar, I did that, but I looked around the basement for a while, until I found the room with the standing cells. I then asked Samuel about it, who caught on".

"But if you're not master's slave, Samuel isn't allowed to punish you", interjected Stephanie.

"My master heard the whole exchange and told Samuel to show me what that room was for", said Maka.

"Talk about bad luck", said Stephanie.

"What did you end up in the standing cell for?", asked Maka.

"I passed master on the hallway and forgot to greet him", said Stephanie, "The ironic thing is that he didn't even notice, but Samuel, who was walking behind him, did".

"Talk about bad luck", said Maka, "say, do you know who is in the standing cell right now?".

"That would Ferdinand, he somehow overslept and missed roll call", said Stephanie, "He still has to stay in there for a week and a half".

"That's a long time", said Maka.

"We have to hurry up with our work now", said Stephanie, "If we don't finish quickly enough, we'll get a whipping, or at least I'll get one". They then hurried up to finish the weeding the garden. They interrupted their work when it was time for breakfast. There was a large communal dining room for the slaves, which was almost completely full. After they had eaten, they went back to weeding the lawn. They finished just before lunch. After lunch, Maka was called to help Dr. Evans. She had to hold his parasol while Dr. Evans was going to to on a walk with his brother. It was an extremely long walk. When they returned in the evening, they found a man in a black cloak carrying a woman over his shoulder waiting at the gate of the mansion. The man was let inside along with Dr. Evans and his brother. Maka hoped the woman he was carrying was not who she thought she was. The woman had a bag over her head. The man, Maka couldn't get a closer look at his face, was lead by a slave to the living room.

Once in the living room, he put the woman he was carrying down, so that she stood on the floor. Maka could now see that the woman wore the same dress as she did, hewever the woman's dress was torn in several places, and very dirty, her hands were tied behind her back and her feet were tied together. Maka then positioned herself so that she could get a better view of the man's face. Surprisingly, it was completely black, except for a white X going through the middle of his face. He then proceeded to pull the woman's bag of her head. It was Samantha. Her eyes filled with immediate terror as she saw Dr. Evans' father.

"Please don't crucify me, master!", begged Samantha,tears welling up in her eyes, "I can explain".

"What is there to explain, you ran away, and you're going to die for it", said Dr. Evans father.

"Please don't kill me, master!", begged Samantha, now crying completely.

"Excuse me, sir", said the black man, "but you owe me the bounty".

"I can make you feel very good if you just let me live!", begged Samantha, between her sobbing.

"Of course, Mr...", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Please, just give me another chance!", begged Samantha, now crying so much that her begging was very hard to understand.

"Ragnarok", said Ragnarok.

"Please show some mercy, master!", begged Samantha, almost incomprehensible.

"I'll get it right away", said Dr. Evans father and left the room, he came back a few minutes later with a roll of bills.

"At least don't crucify me, master", begged Samantha, now barely comprehensible.

"Here, three hundred million dollars, as promised", said Dr. Evans father. Ragnarok took the money and began counting.

"Please, do what you want with me, just don't crucify me!", begged Samantha, her crying had lost volume, so her begging was easier to understand.

"Goodbye, have fun nailing her up", said Ragnarok, leaving the room. Once he was gone, Samantha wanted to make a run for it, but her legs were tied, so she didn't even get a single step far.


	125. Samantha's executioner

"How about Maka here oversees the execution", suggested Dr. Evans.

"I don't know, she can't even read", said his father.

"She learned to read", said Dr. Evans.

"Well, okay then, she'll oversee the execution", said his father pulling Samatha up by her arm, "I'll use Samantha for one last time, Samuel, explain Maka what she has to do, then pick five slaves to help her". He then dragged the sobbing Samantha along with him.

"You might want to know that if Samantha manages to escape again or if you screw up in any other way, it'll be you on the cross", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, unable to hide an expression of fear.

"You'll have to oversee an execution", said Samuel, leading Maka into the library, "I would explain things, but since you can read, you should just read this". He took a book from the shelf and opened it to a chapter titled "Proper etiquette for the crucifixion of slaves". Maka read it with a look of horror on her face.

"Here's the team I picked for you", said Samuel once Maka had finished reading the chapter, the team consisted of Stephanie, another female slave and three male slaves, "I also took the liberty of fetching this map for you". He unfolded it on a table and began to list important sites of New Vegas.

"...and this is Golgotha, the area reserved for the execution of slaves, it's where Samantha will die", concluded Samuel. Maka decided to see whether Dr. Evans' father was done playing with Samantha for the last time. So she told her team to wait for her in the library and ordered one of them to show her the room of Dr. Evans' father. On the way, she passed Dr. Evans on the hallway.

"Master?", said Maka.

"What is?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Do you want to play with Samantha for one last time, too, or should I proceed with the execution?", asked Maka, not believing how indifferent her voice sounded.

"I'll take her for a last ride, you know where my room is?", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She continued to go to the room of Dr. Evans' father. At the door, she could hear a rhythmic moaning, along with Samantha's sobbing. Maka waited patiently for the moaning to stop. Once the moaning had stopped and only Samantha's crying was heard, Maka knocked at the door.

"Wait", said Dr. Evans' father from behind the door. After twenty minutes, he said "Enter".

"I wanted to see if you were done with Samantha, your son wants to take her for a last ride, too, old master", said Maka in unbelievable indifference.

"Yes, did you ask Wes, too?", asked Dr. Evans' father, "I'm sure he would like enjoy her for a last time, too".

"I'll get on it, old master", said Maka. He handed her Samantha, who was now naked and wearing handcuffs but had her feet free. Maka grabbed Samantha's left arm, and ordered the other slave to grab Samantha's right arm. Then they started to drag Samantha towards Dr. Evans' room.

"Please, just let me go!", begged Samantha once her sobbing had died down a bit, "Please don't kill me, please don't kill me! If you can't let me live, then at least make it quick! Please, Maka, show some mercy! Don't play the executioner for them! Please!". Maka wished she could grant Samantha some mercy, but she didn't want to end up on a cross either. They finally arrived at Dr. Evans' room.

"Here she is, master", said Maka, "Where can I find your brother, master, your father mentioned that he might want to enjoy Samantha, too".

"You can find him in the saloon, I think he's playing pool at the moment", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka. She went down into the saloon, where she indeed found Wes trying to push a white ball with a stick so that it hit other balls in such a way that they fell into holes. Maka asked him whether he wanted to play with Samantha one last time before her execution. He said that he'd be waiting in his room for his brother to finish and that Maka should bring Samantha right over to him once his brother was done. Once Dr. Evans was done with Samantha, Maka dragged her over to Wes' room. Samantha was crying to much to speak, for which Maka was very grateful, the begging made it even harder for Maka than it already was. She brought Samantha to Wes' room, who told her that he'll be finished with her in roughly half an hour. Maka came back half an hour later and dragged Samantha to an empty room in the slave quarter's and had her assistants tie her to the bed, so that Samantha wouldn't be able to run away or hurt herself. Then it was finally time for dinner. After she had eaten dinner, she brought a plate with vegetables and a bowl of water to Samantha's room to feed her. When she arrived, Samantha had stopped crying.

"Can't you just let me go?", begged Samantha.

"No, I can't", said Maka, "If I do that, I'll get crucified".

"Then can't you at least kill me quickly?", begged Samantha, "I don't want to die on the cross".

"No, shut up and eat", said Maka, and shoved a vegetable into Samantha's mouth. Samantha chewed and swallowed obediently. Maka fed her the entire plate of vegetables like this, then she made her drink the bowl with the water.

"Please, do something, anything", begged Samantha, "I don't want to die on the cross".

"There is nothing I can do", said Maka. Turning to leave. The next part of the execution would start tomorrow, Maka shuddered at what she would have to do to Samantha, what she would have let others do to her. Maka asked Samuel where she should sleep, before she asked her owner for permission to go to bed. So she went to bed. Samuel had assigned to her the bottom bunk of a bunk bed.


	126. Preparartions for the main event

Maka had difficulties sleeping. She turned and tossed, wondering about whether she was doing the right thing. Was it right to oversee Samantha's execution? Yes, it was, if she didn't, she would be one getting crucified. She didn't have a choice. But how she wished she could just say no. But she couldn't, well she could, but if she did, she would get crucified, and then she would never see her homeland again. Eventually, after hours of thinking and turning and tossing around, Maka fell asleep, if only for two hours. When she got up in the morning, she called Stephanie and the rest of the team, it was time for the first stage of Samantha's execution, the book was surprisingly detailed about the what to do leading up to the crucifixion, for which Maka was grateful, that way she didn't have to think up the tortures herself. Maka had Samuel give her a chain and two padlocks, then she had her team untie Samantha and cuff her hands behind her back again. As Samuel called the slaves to roll call, Maka dragged the begging and crying Samantha into the main room of the slave quarters, where roll call was being held. She waited until Samuel had finished with roll call, then Maka began to speak.

"As you know, the slave Samantha has attempted to escape, and will be crucified tomorrow", said Maka, who could not believe how easily she spoke these words, which she had read in the book. She had never believed she would be capable of something like that, but she was perfectly capable of doing it. "For today, her body will be available for any of you who would like some amusement. You are free to take a break to use her, as long as your work doesn't suffer from it. Be warned however, that if you kill or seriously injure her, you will be crucified". Samantha was crying. The slaves were dead quiet. Then one of them raised his hand.

"Does this mean there will only be one roll call a day now?", asked the slave.

"Yes", said Samuel, "As Maka just said, you are free to take a break if you want to enjoy Samantha before she gets crucified tomorrow". Maka dragged the crying Samantha into a room and connected the chain she got from Samuel to Samantha's collar, then she chained Samantha to the bed, so that Samantha could not fight back or leave the room. Maka hoped that nobody else would seriously injure Samantha, this was something that must not happen until the crucifixion tomorrow. Maka went to find Dr. Evans' father. There were supplies for the crucifixion that she needed to pick up.

"Excuse me, old master?", asked Maka.

"What is?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"We need a cross if we are to crucify Samantha", said Maka.

"I already ordered one at a carpenter, just hand this in", said Dr. Evans' father. He handed her a sheet of paper that said that he had paid for a cross and all the necessary equipment and that it would be handed over when this sheet got presented.

"Thank you, old master", said Maka. She then asked for directions to the carpenter. Then she went to visit the carpenter, taking her team along and some shovels, seeing that a cross would probably heavy. When she arrived at the carpenter, she handed them the document Dr. Evans' father had given her, and the carpenter showed her the cross in the back room. It was in three pieces, the vertical beam, the horizontal beam and a piece to anchor the cross in the ground. The vertical beam had sign at the top, Dr Evans' father seems to have told the carpenter to write "Samantha – runaway slave" on it. Maka imagined what would be written on hers if she was going to get crucified, "Maka – runaway slave", "Maka – entered master's office without permission", "Maka – destroyed valuable historical artifacts", "Maka – opened master's mail" or "Maka – failed in her duty as executioner", thinking of this made her shudder involuntarily. A bit below the sign was a niche for the horizontal beam. A good bit below the niche was the sedile, a small vertical piece of wood forming a kind of small bench for the unlucky slave to rest his, or in this case her, body-weight on. This made the punishment last much longer before the unfortunate soul finally expired. Below the sedile was a foot rest, even though it surface was much to steep to effectively rest one's feet on this. It was the place they would nail Samantha's feet to, after they had nailed her arms to the horizontal beam. At the base of the cross was a small niche to connect the cross to the anchor, so that it would not fall down. In addition, there were nails, four long ones, they served to connect the horizontal beam to the vertical beam, two large ones, they would go through Samantha's arms, between two bones in the lower arm, radius and ulna. Then there was another long nail, it would go through Samantha's feet, affixing them to the foot rest. Then there was a nail to connect the cross to the anchor. A mallet and a bag for the nails were also included.

"You two, said Maka, pointing at Stephanie and the other female slave, "Bring the horizontal beam to master's house. The rest of you, carry the vertical beam to Golgotha, I'll carry the anchor and the nails". Everybody did as they were told.

Golgotha was filled with slaves who had been executed and were now in various stages of decomposition, like the field of repentance. Which was not surprising, given the fact that both of them served the exact same purpose. Maka went and looked for a good place for the cross. She eventually found a place with a rather nice view.

"We'll put it here", declared Maka. One of the male slaves got the shovel and started digging a hole for the anchor. After he had finished one third of the hole, the next one took over. When the third one was done, Maka placed the anchor. They packed the hole with earth, to make sure that the anchor was secure. To test it, they put the vertical beam into the anchor, so that it was facing towards the nice view. The beam was standing firmly. Now Maka walked back to the mansion. It was time for lunch. The lunch was tasted stale, everybody else was practically shoveling it in, but to Maka it was tasteless and bland with a slight taste of decay, she had force herself to eat it, then she got some food for Samantha, who begged for her life between each bite. After she fed Samantha, she checked if the horizontal beam had arrived. It had. Since she didn't have to do anything in her function as executioner, she helped out cleaning the kitchen.


	127. Disassociation

After dinner, which tasted like rotten meat, even though it was made from vegetables, it was time for the next part of Samantha's execution. Maka went to room where Samantha was being held. Samantha looked extremely exhausted and had fallen asleep. Maka removed the chain and woke her up.

"Please don't crucify me", begged Samantha. Maka and Stephanie dragged her to the main room of the slave quarters and began to affix Samantha to the whipping post, Samantha was begging for her life or at least for a quick dead all the way. Samuel had called all the other slaves. They looked at Samantha. After Maka had finished restraining Samantha, she went and fetched the whip, not the whip used for usual punishments, but a far more light whip.

"You have to disassociate yourself from this runaway slave, or suffer the same punishment", said Maka to the other slaves, "Give her one lash and spit on her". Samantha broke down crying again. Maka went over and gave her a lash, she felt like a traitor as she did so, then she spit on her before she handed the whip over to Stephanie, the executioners had to go first. Stephanie did as Maka did, handing the whip over to the next executioner. There was not a single slave who would prefer the cross over disassociating himself from Samantha. After fifty slaves had disassociated themselves from her, she was crying to much to beg for her life. By the time the one hundred and twentieth slave was done, Samantha's back was oozing blood. If they had used a meaner whip, she'd be dead by now. Maka took the whip again and went to fetch another whip. The cat o' nine tails. Nine strands, a knot with a small lead weight at the end of it. At each of these ends, the strand split into three more strands. Maka had to be careful not to kill Samantha or to hurt her too seriously. Samantha screamed louder than before when the whip first made contact with her skin, leaving nine blood red lines. Knowing that if she stops, it would be her getting this whipping, Maka continued to deliver the lashes. She stopped once Samantha's body was almost completely covered by the small, blood red lines. Stephanie removed Samantha's restraints and turned her around, for a third whipping on the front. Samantha tried to kick Maka, or maybe she was just kicking around to make the pain go away, and almost succeeded. Maka didn't stop whipping Samantha until her body looked like a road map covered by blood red streets. Then they removed Samantha from the whipping post and gave her shower to clean her wounds. During the shower, she found the strength to start begging for her life again. Maka brought her into bed, and then tied her to the bed, so that she could not run away or hurt herself.

"Please let me live, please!", begged Samantha.

"You should get some sleep", advised Maka, "It will be the last sleep you'll ever get.

"Please let me escape, please, I don't want to die!", begged Samantha. Maka left the room, she would have to get some sleep for the main event tomorrow. But she couldn't find any sleep. Once again she was tossing and turning in bed. Wondering what her father would think of her, if he saw the terrible things that Maka was doing. Maka felt ashamed of herself, disgusted with what she was doing to another person, just so that she herself could survive. But if she refused to torture and kill Samantha, it would be her getting tortured and executed. Maka didn't know if that was a valid excuse. It probably wasn't.

But Maka didn't want to die. Since she couldn't sleep, she got up again and quietly walked around. She went to Samantha's room and listened at the door. She heard a soft, regular breathing. Maka wondered how Samantha could sleep, seeing what gruesome fate awaited her in the morning. She was probably too exhausted to fight the sleep. Maka walked around the house, very quit. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was midnight. In six hours Samantha would hang from the cross. Maka figured she could walk around the garden without incurring her owner's wrath. If there was just a way to avoid having to crucify Samantha. She sat down underneath a tree. There was nothing she could do for Samantha, if she tried anything, she would just get crucified, too. Maybe she could run away with Samantha. But would they succeed? Samantha had failed once before already, and she would be even worse equipped to make a run for it now. There was no reason to believe that Samantha would succeed on a second attempt at running away. All that would happen if Maka let Samantha escape would be that the carpenter would earn even more money, "Maka – Allowed condemned slave to escape". The only thing Maka could do was to carry out the crucifixion the way she was supposed to. Maka yawned, maybe she should take another shot at sleep. Back inside, she met Stephanie.

"Can't sleep either?", asked Stephanie.

"I don't want to hurt Samantha", said Maka.

"Neither do I", said Stephanie, "But we don't have a choice".

"Maybe we could run away", suggested Maka.

"You see know quickly Samantha was caught and returned, I don't think we'd succeed", said Stephanie.

"You're probably right", said Maka. She wondered why Samantha had tried to escape. Maybe Dr. Evans' father had done something to her which made her run away. Maybe she simply grew more confident in her abilities. Maka would probably never know. Stephanie, after a period of silence, said that she would go back to bed now. Maka felt extremely tired, too, but didn't think she would be able to succeed in finding some sleep. Realizing that she would need some sleep if she didn't want to screw up the crucifixion tomorrow, and end up getting crucified herself, she would better see to it that she got some sleep. But she still couldn't get any sleep. She tossed and turned around in bed, but sleep evaded her. She tried to take her mind of what she would have to do to Samantha tomorrow, but found herself unable to do so.


	128. Road to hell

At half to five o'clock, the tyrannical ringing of the alarm clock drove Maka out of bed. She had not even gotten a single minute of sleep. She got up and found the other member's of her team. She told two of them to fetch the horizontal beam, one to fetch ropes and one to fetch shackles for Samantha's feet. She herself went into the kitchen to fetch Samantha's last meal. The head-chef had gotten up early to prepare the traditional meal for slaves about to be executed. A foul smelling thick gooey mush. Maka had never tasted it, but she assumed it tasted just as bad as it smelled, if not worse. On the other hand, it was very nutritious and all in all a healthy meal. Maka took the dish and a large jug of water and brought it to Samantha, who was sleeping peacefully. Her wounds had stopped bleeding and were scabbed over.

"Good morning, Samantha", said Maka. Samantha's eyes flew open, they were still puffy from the crying yesterday.

"Please let me go", begged Samantha.

"I've come to give you your last meal", said Maka, showing her the mush, "Eat up". Maka took a spoon and filled it with the mush. Samantha recoiled in disgust.

"Eat it", said Maka, "It's your last meal, you must be hungry". Samantha ate a spoonful, with a look of disgust on her face. Maka offered Samantha another spoonful. At first it looked like Samantha was going to refuse, but then the hunger got the better of her and she ate it greedily. After Maka had fed the entire bowl to Samantha, she led her drink the water, which she also drank greedily. Stephanie and another slave brought the horizontal beam. As she saw that, Samantha resumed crying and begging. Next the shackles and the rope arrived. Maka shackled Samantha's feet together. The chain was long enough to walk, but too short to run. They untied Samantha from the bed and forced her to spread her arms on the horizontal beam. Two of them held each arm, the other two tied her arms to the horizontal beam, all the while Samantha was begging for her life, for mercy, for a mercy kill. They helped Samantha to her feet, given that she couldn't stand up by herself with such a heavy object on her shoulders. The next problem was that she didn't fit through the door, because the beam was too long. So they turned her sideways, she went right through the door that way.

Samuel had already gathered the rest of the slaves in the main room. Maka led Samantha before them, so that they could have a good final look at her. The book had told her exactly what to say now.

"Get a good look at her, for she is now to walk to Golgotha to get crucified for attempting to escape", said Maka, "may her demise be a lesson to all of us". The slaves were silent, as it was expected of them. Samantha was crying. Maka looked at the map and realized that she had forgotten to plan the route that Samantha would walk, according to the book, this route should be rather long. She looked at the map to quickly make up route, but then she had an idea.

"Samuel, I was wondering if your master preferred a certain route to Golgotha for the slaves he wants crucified?", asked Maka.

"Yes, good that you asked. Let me draw it on the map", said Samuel, he took out a pen and drew a rather long route going from the mansion to Golgotha on the map, "It's a rather nice, scenic route, with lot's of hills". Samantha's crying intensified as she heard this.

"Thank you, I'll use that route", said Maka. She would walk Samantha right to Golgotha, but she feared how Dr. Evans and his father would react if she didn't lead Samantha down their preferred route.

"Get moving", said Maka to Samantha, wishing herself that it was already over.

"Please", begged Samantha.

"There's nothing I can do", said Maka, "Now get moving".

"Here, this might come in handy", said Samuel, handing her the whip.

"Please don't kill me", begged Samnatha.

"Get moving", said Maka.

"Please, please, please don't kill me", begged Samantha. Maka was worried what would happen to her if Samantha arrived late to her crucifixion.

"I said get moving", said Maka as she brought down the whip on Samantha with a heavy heart. Samantha screamed in pain and got moving. Samantha begged for her life, then for a mercy kill, then for them to at least take a shorter route to Golgotha. Her begging stopped when they reached the first hill, she was probably saving her breath. At the top of the hill, Maka looked around and couldn't help but to admire the beautiful landscape. A lush grassland with occasional forest, shrouded in mist. She had heard that it was once a dessert. After they had passed the top of the hill, Samantha stumbled on the way down. It occurred to Maka, that if Samantha fell down, she would be unable to break her fall, which would probably result in some painful injuries. As the path became level again, Samantha resumed her begging. She begged when it was level, was quiet when it went upwards or downwards, to save her breath or so that she could concentrate on keeping her balance. Eventually, they reached Golgotha. Samantha broke down begging and crying as she saw it. Maka told her to move, but Samantha just knelt there, begging to be left alive in between her sobs. Eventually, Maka had no other choice than to resort to the whip. It took a few lashes to get Samantha moving again, each one opened some of yesterday's wounds again. Driven by the whip, Samantha moved. A few minutes later, they arrived where the vertical beam was standing. Dr. Evans' father was already waiting. Samantha was crying to much to beg.


	129. Samantha's Execution

"You're five minutes late", said Dr. Evans' father, checking his watch.

"Please don't have me crucified, master!", begged Samantha.

"I'm sorry, old master", said Maka.

"I'm begging you, please don't do this!", begged Samantha.

"Which route did you take?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Please don't kill me, please don't kill me", begged Samantha.

"The one your head butler recommended", said Maka.

"Please, master, have mercy!", begged Samantha.

"Begin with the crucifixion", ordered Dr. Evans' father.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no please please please please don't", begged Samantha. Maka ordered two of her fellow executioners to take the vertical crossbeam down. Then two more untied the horizontal crossbeam from Samantha, who immediately tried to escape. However she tripped over her shackles and fell down, Stephanie and another executioner grabbed her arms and held her. They placed the horizontal beam, it had a niche were it went into the vertical beam, on the vertical beam. Then Maka nailed the four nails provided to connect the two crossbeams. The cross was now assembled.

"Lie down on the cross", ordered Maka.

"No, please, no", begged Samnantha.

"Lie down on the cross", ordered Maka.

"Please, no", begged Samantha. Maka lashed Samantha in the chest. Samantha's crying intensified and she lied down on the cross.

"Put your hands on the crossbeam", ordered Maka, "back on the crossbeam, palms facing away". Samantha cried to much to beg as she obeyed.

"You four, grab her hands", ordered Maka, "You, grab her legs". They immeadiately obeyed and grabbed Samantha's extremities.

"A bit to the right", ordered Maka, "Stop". Maka picked up the first nail and the mallet and went up to Samantha's right arm.

"Please don't", begged Samantha, trying to pull her arm away. Maka, with a shaking hand, held the nail over Samantha's lower arm, between ulna and radius.

"Please, don't do this", begged Samantha. Maka took a deep breath and wound back the mallet.

"I'm sorry", whispered Maka, almost inaudible. She brought the mallet down with full force on the nail, driving it through Samantha's arm and into the wood. Samantha screamed in excruciating agony. Maka hit the nail again to drive it all the way in. Samantha's body convulsed in pain, the guy holding her feet had trouble avoiding her kicks, the team at her left hand had trouble holding it still. Maka would wait for a minute so that Samantha could calm down a bit. After a minute, Samantha was still screaming in agony, having stopped only once shortly to catch her breath, but the team at her left arm and managed to immobilize it to the point where Maka could drive the second nail in, especially since they had been reinforced by the right arm team. Maka held the second nail over Samantha's left arm and wound back the mallet.

"I'm sorry", whispered Maka, Dr. Evans' father mustn't hear it. She brought down the mallet and drove the nail through Samantha's left arm. Samantha's screams intensified. Maka hit it again to drive the nail all the way in. The four who had been holding her hand now went to help immobilize her legs. They waited for Samantha to calm down a bit. If they did it too fast, Samantha could fall unconscious from the pain, which would be good for Samantha, but very bad for them. After Samantha's screaming had lost some volume, Maka decided to move on with the crucifixion.

"Place her right food on the footrest and her left foot over the right foot", ordered Maka. They did as they were told. Maka held the last nail over Samantha's left foot, which was placed diagonally over her right foot. Over a group of bones collectively referred to as the tarsus, if one went over the foot from the toes, it would be the area right before the leg. She held the nail in such an angle that it would penetrate the tarsus in both of her feet. She wound back the mallet and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry", whispered Maka, almost inaudible. She brought down the mallet and Samantha screamed even louder now that all the nails were in place. Samantha desperately struggled against the nails, but it was futile. Even the foot nail had been embedded in the wood. Maka hit it again to drive it in all the way.

"Let's lift the cross up", said Maka. Everybody grabbed the cross and they slowly lifted it up, while Samantha howled and screamed and cried in pain. Once the cross was up, Maka around it to look at Samantha hanging naked from the cross. She was sitting on the sedile, screaming in pain. The sedile was placed so that the slave had to lower him- or herself to sit on it. This lasted for several minutes, during which Maka used the last nail to connect the cross to the anchor.

"Please let me down from here, master", begged Samantha, "Please, please, don't let me die like this. Please, I don't want to die this way. Please let me down. This hurts, please let me down, master".

"Don't worry, you will get down", said Dr. Evans' father, "just like that guy got down". He pointed at decomposed body of slave which had been hanging from a cross yesterday, but which must have fallen down over night. Samantha began to cry. They kept watching her for some time. Samantha eventually resumed begging for mercy. After some time, she lifted herself off the sedile, which, as her already tortured expression attested, must be causing her even greater agony. Maka knew why she did that, through hanging from the cross, while it mainly caused large amounts of pain simply because of the nails and how the arms were angled from the body while resting on the sedile, it also made it continually harder for Samantha to breathe, again because of how the arms were angled. In order to allow her lungs to relax, she would have to get her arms into a right angle, which she could only achieve by pulling and pushing herself up by her nails, which, according to the book, caused extreme agony. The book said that the first time the slave would pull him- or herself up would be a few minutes after the cross had been erected. Then the slave would wait until the lack of oxygen became unbearable to pull him- or herself up again, because of how much it hurt, which would be roughly once an hour. Samantha would die once she didn't have any strength left to lift herself up, which would probably happen on day three, but if Samantha was lucky, it would already happen on day two. It rarely happened that a slave survived until day four, and in some countries, like South Quebec, it was customary to pardon such slaves and exile them instead, but it was not customary here. If Samantha survived until day four, it would be extremely bad luck. Maka's greatest fear was that Samantha didn't survive for even one day. If that happened, it would be counted as a screw up by the executioners, and Maka remembered what her owner had said would happen if she screwed up.


	130. A feast

"Okay, we're done here", said Dr. Evans' father, "Let's go".

"Yes, old master", said Maka.

"Yes, master", said the other executioners.

"Please don't leave me here", begged Samantha. Her begging continued, but it became quieter as they moved away from her cross. Maka read what was written on the other crosses. Apart from Samantha, there was only one other runaway slave. The others where there for a variety of offenses, including things such as arson and stealing from their owners. One was there because he killed another one of his owner's slaves. Then there was one who assaulted his owner. Eventually they left Golgotha. Maka was now too far away from Samantha to understand any of her begging. But she continued to hear Samantha even as they arrived at the mansion again, a faint incomprehensible whisper. Dr. Evans' father went into the kitchen to talk with the head chef. Then he went eat. Maka went to sit around the main hall of the slave quarters. She remained sitting there and poking at the ground until they were called to breakfast. Maka didn't touch her breakfast. It was as if Maka could still hear Samantha. She gave it to the slave sitting next to her, who ate it. During the morning, Maka sat around the main room of the slave quarters, looking at the whipping post at which she had whipped Samantha yesterday. Then Samuel noticed her and assigned her to clean a rather long hallway. The hallway was so long that she didn't finish until it was time for lunch.

For lunch they got a goulash made from three different types of meat with three different kind of noodles and a cup of wine. Dr. Evans' father must have ordered a treat for all of his slaves, except Samantha. This type of meal must be extremely rare for them. In fact, it had even been rare for Maka to eat meat before she got captured. But at first Maka didn't want to touch this meal, but then the hunger overcame her and she ate it greedily. She had to say that it tasted rather good, the head-chef seemed to be very good at his job. After lunch was over, Maka felt like she had truly betrayed Samantha. She then decided to try and walk around the house in order to look busy. Unfortunately, five minutes later, she met her owner in the hall.

"Good afternoon, master", greeted Maka, remembering what happened to Stephanie.

"Bring me a bowl of fruits to my room", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She went down into the kitchen.

"My master wants a bowl of fruit", said Maka to the head chef, everybody else was busy cleaning.

"What kind of fruit?", asked the head-chef.

"I don't know", said Maka, "maybe grapes".

"You, prepare a bowl of fruits for master's son", said the head-chef, pointing at a young slave. The young slave nodded and went to put together a bowl of fruit.

"That goulash was delicious, by the way", said Maka.

"Thanks, I actually planned on giving you the stuff I prepared for Samantha, but master told me to prepare goulash for you", said the head-chef.

"Why did he do this?", asked Maka.

"He always gets generous after he had one of his slaves crucified", said the head-chef, "five years ago, when Ferdinand and Florian got crucified, he ordered me to prepare lasagna".

"What's your name, anyway?", asked Maka.

"I'm Miguel", said Miguel.

"I'm Maka", said Maka, "Say, is it true that your master once had a slave crucified, but then changed his mind and got him down again".

"Ah yes, Heiko", said Miguel, "I had to prepare a special meal once when he was crucified, and once again when he was taken down".

"What happened to him?", asked Maka.

"Master set him free", said Miguel, "That reminds me of when Rebecca got crucified. He moved the crucifixion by seven months".

"Why?", asked Maka.

"She was pregnant", said Miguel, "he waited until she had given birth to the child, then he had her nailed to the cross".

"Here's the fruit bowl", said the other slave.

"Took you long enough", turning to Maka, he added, "Bye, it was nice talking to you". Maka said goodbye and went to bring her owner his fruits. She found him in his room playing chess with Nora.

"Here's the fruit you wanted, master", said Maka.

"Good, now leave us alone", said Dr. Evans. Nora grabbed one of the apples and ate it.

"Yes, master", said Maka, she was surprised that Nora didn't get slapped when she grabbed the apple. Maka continued to walk around the house looking busy, but was caught by Samuel, who assigned her to clean yet another long corridor. After she had cleaned roughly one fifth of the corridor, Dr. Evans' father passed through.

"Ask my son whether he would like to accompany me to the slave market today", ordered Dr. Evans' father, "to help me pick out a new sex slave".

"Which one, old master?", asked Maka.

"Both, now go", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, old master", said Maka. She then went to Dr. Evans' room, where he was still playing chess with Nora.

"Excuse me, master, but your father asks if you would like to help him pick out a new sex slave", said Maka.

"Sure, sounds like fun", said Dr. Evans, "tell him I'll just finish up this game and then I'll go".

"Yes, master", Maka, she then went asked one of the slaves where Wes' room was located, and went there. She walked in on Wes having his way with a young female slave.

"Excuse me, but your father asks if you would like to help him pick out a new sex slave", said Maka.

"Tell him I'll just finish this up here", said Wes between thrusts, "And I'll see to it that you'll get a whipping".

"Yes, master's brother", said Maka. Then she went and reported back to Dr. Evans father, who said that he would wait for his sons. Maka decided that she should go and fetch a parasol for her owner. A rather long time later her owner and his brother came downstairs.


	131. Sophie

"Let's go then", said Wes, grabbing Maka's breast, he added, "Maybe you should buy yourself a sex slave, too, your slave's tits are basically nonexistent".

"Maybe I will", said Dr. Evans. The group then left. Each of the three albinos had somebody to hold a parasol over their heads. After an half-hour long walk, they arrived at the slave market. They handed in their firearms, each of the three was carrying a pistol, and then went inside. This slave market was bigger than the one on which Maka had been sold, but not that much, they only had about ten slaves more. Dr. Evans, his brother and his father began browsing through the slaves. Maka sat down on a bench. The slave who carried the parasol for Wes did the same thing. She and Maka eventually began to talk about this and that. Her name is Melissa. Dr. Evans father showed interest in a red haired female slave. He was primarily looking at the slave, especially at her large and well formed breasts. Then he began to trail his hand up her elegantly shaped legs, before he brushed it over her beautiful hip. Another woman of who's appearance Maka would be jealous if she was free. Dr. Evans grabbed the slaves breasts and gave one of them a squeeze, before he let go of her and began to read the documentation, which was in a folder, which had been chained to the stage. Maka wondered what was written in these documents. Meanwhile Dr. Evans was in the back with his brother, making fun of a slave with no ears. Maka decided to simply look what kind of documents one of these folder's contained. She went into the middle row and grabbed one of these folders. Inside was a document which contained the slaves registration number, where the slave came from, the one who's documents Maka was reading was captured in South Colorado by Tom Smith, then sold to this market over Morcerf and Morrrel. The documents also contained information about the slave's education, this one had none. Then there were detailed medical information, including height, weight and any diseases the slave might have. This one was one meter and sixty four centimeters, rather small, and fifty three kilograms heavy. It also told if said slave was a virgin, the options were "yes", "no" and "unknown", this one was a virgin. Maka assumed that the "unknown" option would get checked for male slaves. Maka put the folder down again and went back to the bench where she was sitting earlier .Dr. Evans' father called over a salesman.

"Can I help you, Mr. ...", said the salesman.

"Dr. Evans", said Dr. Evans' father, "I'm interested in buying this slave here".

"You've got a fine, Dr. Evans", said the salesman, "a young, healthy and certainly very pretty slave, good as a normal house slave, and also good as a sex slave".

"The documentation says that she is a virgin", said Dr. Evans' father.

"She certainly is", said the salesman, "let me show you". The slave closed her eyes.

"Well, the hymen's intact", said Dr. Evans father, "She's otherwise healthy, too, right?".

"Certainly", said the salesman, letting go of the slave, "She has a good dental record, and as you have certainly read, she's otherwise healthy, too".

"How much?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Fifty million", said the salesman.

"Fifteen million ", said Dr. Evans' father. After a bit of haggling, they settled on twenty five million. Dr. Evans father offered to pay with a check. A guard came to prepare the slave, Dr. Evans' father and the salesman went into the salesman's office to fill out some paperwork. After some time, Dr. Evans' father came out of the office, pulling his new slave behind him. He called over his sons, who had moved on to making fun off a slave without a nose. Then he scolded them for their immature behavior. Calling the act of making fun of physical imperfections, like missing ears childish. Dr. Evans and his brother both looked at the floor, ashamed of themselves, or maybe embarrassed by the fact that their father was scolding them in public even though they were both grown men. Melissa giggled. Wes stared angrily at her. Melissa stopped giggling. After Dr. Evans' father had stopped scolding his sons, the group left, collected their firearms and went on the way back.

"We are going to make a little detour, there's someone I would like...", said Dr. Evans' father, turning to his new slave, he asked, "What is your name, anyway?".

"Sophie, master", said Sophie.

"There's someone I would like Sophie to meet", said Dr. Evans' father. His sons didn't object to that idea. They went to Golgotha, to Samantha's cross. Samantha was still alive, which wasn't surprising, considering that she was only hanging there for a few hours. She was resting on the sedile, looking at the slaves who had been crucified to her right. The wounds on her arms and feet had stopped bleeding. There was stench of fecal matter and urine, apparently, Samantha needed to go in the mean time, but couldn't. The stench seemed to be attracting insects.

"Please let me down from here, master", begged Samantha, "This hurts, and breathing is getting harder and harder. Please, please, please, this is extremely painful. Please let me down". Samantha stopped her begging to gasp for air. Since that didn't seem to work properly, she lifted herself off the sedile, causing her face to contort in even more agony. While she was off the sedile, she breathed greedily, sucking the live giving air in.

"Sophie, meet Samantha", said Dr. Evans' father, "She was my sex slave, like you are now. But then she tried to run away. If you try to run away, this will happen to you". Samantha lowered herself back onto the sedile.

"Please let me down, master", begged Samantha, "This hurts so much, please let me down".

"I would never try to run away, master", said Sophie.

"Please, master, show some mercy!", begged Samantha.

"That's good for you", said Dr. Evans' father, "Let's go".

"No, please don't leave me here", begged Samantha. Her begging continued until they had left Golgotha.

"Oh, brother, before I forget", said Wes, "your slave entered my room without knocking".

"I'll tell the Samuel to punish her", said Dr. Evans.


	132. Duty of a head butler

After they arrived back at the mansion, Dr. Evan's father told some of his slaves to bathe Sophie and bring her to him, so he could break her in. Sophie tried to maintain a neutral facade, but couldn't hide her fear and shame. Dr. Evans called for Samuel and told him to punish Maka, before he went to play this game where you push colored balls into holes with his brother. Samuel dragged Maka along, who didn't dare to resist. Once they had arrived at the whipping post, he ordered her to disrobe completely. Then he restrained her to the whipping post and left. Maka figured he was going to fetch the whip. A young slave child saw Maka and asked her if she screwed up Samantha's crucifixion and was going to get crucified, too. Maka told the little girl that she was not in that much trouble and that she would only get a whipping. Then the little girl's mother called and the girl ran away from Maka and towards her mother. A short time later, Maka could hear the little girl screaming in pain. Maka wondered what that little girl had done wrong. While Maka waited at the whipping post to get whipped, several slaves walked by and stared at her, she felt humiliated. Her ankles and toes were starting to hurt from having to stand on her tiptoes, but if she took the weight off her toes, the restraints would cut into her arms. Eventually Maka could hear Samuel return. His steps were different from the steps of all the other slaves, because he wore shoes instead of Sandals. Looking around, which was rather difficult, Maka noticed that a small crowd had formed to watch her getting whipped. Samuel steps stopped, this meant that her whipping was about to begin. Maka decided that she would not scream during this whipping, not with so many other slaves watching.

"Maka is going to get punished for walking into young master's room without knocking", explained Samuel, before he started the whipping. Maka's back exploded in pain at seven different places. The first lash had landed. Maka clenched her teeth. She was doing good. A second lash, to the right of the first, the interference made it difficult not to scream, but she managed. With the third lash, which landed above the first one, between her shoulder blades, tears began to well up in her eyes. The next two lashes hit her lower back, she was surprised that she was still not crying or screaming, even though one of the slaves said that she was. Maka wondered how long she would be able to keep this up. The next lash answered her question, as Maka started to scream in pain. She lost count of the lashes. A short time later, Maka began to cry, but Samuel showed no signs of stopping the whipping. Maka wondered how long the other captives held out against the pain. Longer than her, or not as long? After what seemed like an eternity, Samuel stopped the whipping. Maka continued to cry for a bit, until it eventually turned into sobbing, which then turned into sniffling. Then Maka stopped crying. Samuel then released the restraints, causing Maka to fall to the floor.

"Dr. Wes Evans wants to you to come to his room", said Samuel. Maka stood up and got dressed and went to Wes' room. There was music coming from the other side. She was about to enter, but then she remembered why she had got whipped a minute ago. She knocked on the door.

"Enter", said Wes. Maka entered the room. Wes was playing some sort of instrument, which you hold up to your neck and play with a stick with strings on one side..

"You wanted to see me, master's brother?", asked Maka.

"Nice, you're learning", said Wes, "I was worried the whipping wouldn't do".

"Is there something I can do for you, master's brother?", asked Maka.

"No", said Wes.

"I'll leave you alone then, master's brother", said Maka as she closed the door. On the hallway, she met Stephanie, who was sweeping the floor.

"Impressive how you endured that whipping", said Stephanie, "I would have cried earlier".

"Thanks", said Maka, feeling somewhat better. Maka went down into the main hall of the slave quarter's and sat leaned on the wall. Eventually, Samuel saw this and told her to clean yet another hallway. As Maka was cleaning the hallway, she wondered whether this mansion was made of anything other than hallways. After dinner, which consisted of bread with jam, Samuel grabbed Maka and dragged her into his quarters. He had a rather nice apartment to himself. His own bedroom, his own living room, his own dining room, his own kitchen, his own bathroom and his own office. Maka couldn't help but be impressed, his quarters were larger than her families house back in West Wyoming was, and she lived with her father, but Samuel had this to himself. All the rooms were rather small, of course, if Maka were to lie down in Samuel's living room, with her feet on the wall, only a baby would fit between her head and the other wall, but it was still larger than the house Maka lived in before she was captured.

"Nice quarters you have here", said Maka.

"Thanks", said Samuel, "anyway, your master wanted me to explain what I have to do as head butler, since you'll be head maid once he moves to a larger house".

"Yes", said Maka. Samuel took out a book. It was a kind of calendar. Maka read today's entry. It said: "Maka, whipping, direct order by Dr. Soul Evans, master's son, proprietor". Maka turned the pages to an earlier date, in different handwriting, "Samantha, crucifixion, attempted escape", a few days earlier, still, in the same handwriting as Maka's entry, "Ferdinand, two weeks in standing cell, failure to report for roll call".

"As you see, I have to note down all punishments", said Samuel, "Samantha's entry has been written by my master, since I'm not allowed to order a capital punishment. Master regularly checks the entries". He opened the first page of the calendar, it contained a list of all the slaves Dr. Evans' father owned, all one hundred and twenty of them. They were primarily listed by registration number, then by name.

"I also have to conduct roll call", said Samuel, "I just go down this list. If everybody's there, no problem. If someone is missing, I go and tell master immediately". He turned the page to reveal a plan of the house.

"I also have to assign duties", said Samuel, "This plan comes in handy when I have to assign tasks to new arrivals. I generally see to it that each room is cleaned once a week. For this, I have a schedule with everybody's duties a few pages later. For example, Stephanie's duties on Monday are to clean the guest rooms on the west side on the fourth floor. This allows me to check whether they have done there job dutifully or if they need a whipping".

"How ofter does that happen?", asked Maka.

"Roughly once a day", said Samuel, "Recently they have been on their best behavior, though. Anyway, when assigning duties I also have to keep in mind that some of them have special functions, Miguel, for example, is head chef, his duties are to oversee the kitchen, and he answers to master directly, not to me. On another note, his quarters are as large as mine. There are also several slaves who work in the kitchen, they also answer to him. Then there are the sex slaves, since I can't know when they'll be available for work, I can't assign them any regular duties and I'm not allowed to give them too difficult task, so that they stay fit for their duties. Then there is mistress's chambermaid. Then there are Nora and Jamie, they were governess and nanny, respectably, to master's children. He still keeps them around, but they barely do anything around here anymore".

"If they are useless now, then why don't they get sold?", asked Maka.

"It's bad form to sell a slave who loyally served you", explained Samuel, "Master offered to free them, but they both refused".

"Let me guess, their quarters are as big as yours", said Maka.

"Exactly", said Samuel.

"What about slave children?", asked Maka.

"I start assigning them duties once they turn three years old", said Samuel, "it starts out small and easy, something impossible to screw up. As they get older I give them more difficult tasks. If I see some who show potential, I tell master, who then might decide to have them educated, so that he can rent them out later, or sell them".

"What if they screw up?", asked Maka.

"Until they turn twelve, I just order their mother to spank them", said Samuel, "after they're twelve, they get whipped like the rest of the slaves".


	133. Martin's death

"Interesting", commented Maka. Samuel then sent Maka to bed. The next day, Dr. Evans wanted to go on a morning walk, he took Maka along to hold his parasol. Dr. Evans saw Golgotha, and decided to check how Samantha was doing. Already as they approached the cross Samantha started frantically begging for mercy.

"Please let me down, I'm thirsty!", begged Samantha, "and hungry". What Maka couldn't understand is why Samantha had attempted to escape. A few months back, when Maka asked Samantha whether she had any escape plans, she had denied this, citing how long it took to die from crucifixion. Even though she knew that, she still attempted to escape, and now she was suffering the very same fate that she had said she wanted to avoid. It made Maka wonder what happened for Samantha to change her mind. Maka wondered whether she should still try to escape. She knew that if she was caught, she would suffer the same fate as Samantha. But if she made it to West Wyoming, she could rejoin her homeland and aid it in the fight against the New Confederates. How likely was it to get caught?

"Please don't let me die here", begged Samantha, "I don't want to die".

"You should have thought of that before you ran away", said Dr. Evans, before he turned to leave. Samantha continued to beg until they left Golgotha.

"You did a good job crucifying Samantha", said Dr. Evans. Maka would rather get a whipping than to accept this praise.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, on the verge of tears.

"I was honestly worried she'd die too early", said Dr. Evans, "Then you'd have gotten the place right next to her".

"As you can see, master", said Maka, unable to hide a shaking in her voice, "I have fulfilled my duty to your expectations".

"I hope you'll perform similarly as head maid", said Dr. Evans.

"Samuel has already taught me a lot, master", said Maka.

"He's been head butler for twenty years now", said Dr. Evans, "Never performed below expectations, you should aspire to be like him".

"Yes, master", said Maka. She hoped Samantha would die soon. It must be hell, hanging there, waiting to die. Dr. Evans remained silent on the rest of the way to his house. After he arrived there, he told Maka to follow Samuel around. Most of his work consisted of watching the other captives, to ensure that they did their work. After lunch, Maka had some time to herself, so she walked around the house.

In the living room she spied the president's name in a newspaper headline. She pulled the newspaper out of the magazine rack and began to read the article. The headline read "Martin Ligua found dead". That was very bad. General Martin Aaron Ligua was the brother of the president of West Wyoming, and a very high ranking member of West Wyoming's military, having won countless battles for the president. According to the article, he had been found dead in his bed in the morning by one of the palace slaves. It appeared that he had been smothered with a pillow.

The article then went on to talk about various suspects. According to the article, one of the main subjects for the assassination was the president himself, as part of some sort of power play. It was at this moment that the newspaper lost a lot of its credibility in Maka's eyes. The president of West Wyoming would never murder his own brother. This was impossible. But the article actually stated that it was just a speculation. A horribly misguided speculation, but still, just a speculation. They probably had to list every possible subject, no matter how unlikely. The next entity on the list of subjects was the secret service of the New Confederates. Maka always knew that these cowardly dogs would not hesitate to use even the most despicable means to get ahead. She hated them more than ever. But at the same time, she had to say that she had underestimated the New Confederates, she didn't believe any of them to be capable of pulling off such a feat. The next subject was Dr. Josef Eisenberg, whose profession was listed as mercenary captain. Maka now had another reason to hate him, if the fact that he was the one who sold her into slavery wasn't already enough. But it was obvious why Dr. Eisenberg had a motive to order such an act of terrorism. It was just revenge for all the attempts on his life. Maka couldn't really believe how Dr. Eisenberg could evade the Government Interest and Safety Department for so long. She had to give Richard credit, without this guy, Dr. Eisenberg would already be dead. Then the article went on to say that the official stance of West Wyoming's government was that Martin died in unfortunate accident, and that they would have to press on. It was of course still certain that they would win the war. They had to, if they wanted to avenge Martin's death.

Then the article dived into speculation of how Martin's demise would affect the war. This part must have been written by the president of Martin's fan club, because it blew his input on West Wyoming's military history completely out of proportion. If one had only read this article, one would think that West Wyoming's military leadership consisted only of Martin. But as Maka had learned in school, the wise and benevolent president did most of the work, therefore, all what Martin's death would do was that it would delay the inevitable victory of West Wyoming for a bit. This article, on the other hand made it sound as if West Wyoming was already loosing badly and that Martin was the only one preventing a total disaster. This was obviously a made up lie. West Wyoming was winning the war and looked good doing it. They even managed to maintain internal stability and to protect the civilian population from internal and external threats. Maka put this horribly biased newspaper back into the magazine rack. She would destroy it, but she would get in trouble for that.


	134. Soul's family

At three o'clock in the afternoon, a visitor arrived. It was Louis K.. Maka wondered what he was doing here. Then it occurred to her that Louis K. was traveling arms dealer, his presence here was probably coincidental. Louis K. asked for Dr. Soul Evans and Samuel went to tell him that Louis K. was there. Louis K. was then escorted into the living room, where Dr. Evans and his family were waiting, except for Wes.

"Nice to see you", said Dr. Evans.

"Nice to see you, too", said Louis K.

"Father, mother, this is Louis K.", said Dr. Evans, "Louis K., this are my parents, Kenneth and Shirley Evans".

"So you're that arms dealer I keep hearing about", said Dr. Evans' father. Louis K. nodded.

"How was your trip to Europe?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Profitable", said Louis K., "Was also nice to see the old country".

"I've never been to Europe, but I read a lot about it", said Dr. Evans' father.

"I also visited Asia, I made a brief stop on the island of glass before I sailed back to this continent".

"So you basically traveled around the world?", asked Dr. Evans mother.

"I've heard about that island of glass, but I forgot what it was", said Dr. Evan's father.

"It was once called Japan", explained Louis K., "During world war five, it was destroyed through nuclear bombardment, ordered by the first citizen of Europe".

"Sad, would probably be a nice place to visit", said Dr. Evans' father.

"It's still very impressive. I mean, the entire island is glassed over, and you can see the shadows of the dead burned into the glass", said Louis K.

"How did they die?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"From the nuclear blasts", said Louis K., "it's probably one of the nicest deaths there is. You die so fast, you won't even notice. Here one moment, gone the next".

"Maka, bring us something to drink", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka went down into the wine cellar and fetched a bottle of wine, she then fetched a few glasses from the kitchen and served the wine.

"Anything interesting I missed while in Europe?", asked Louis K.

"Various stuff, I won some cases, Maka learned to read", said Dr. Evans, "and I'm going to marry Julia Albarn".

"Specter Albarn's Daughter?", asked Louis K.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"Isn't Specter Albarn's mother your father's sister?", asked Louis K.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans.

"Let's change the topic", interrupted Dr. Evans' father.

"Remember how Spirit got declared persona non grata in West Wyoming many years ago", said Louis K.

"He raped some farm girl, right?", asked Dr. Evans' mother.

"Correct", said Louis K.

"What's your point?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"No, idea", said Louis K., emptying his wine glass. The group of guests then went on to discuss national politics and who they would vote for in the upcoming elections. Maka wondered what an "election", was. But whatever it was, women, like slaves, weren't allowed to vote, meaning that Maka was part of two groups who weren't allowed to vote. But Maka seriously wondered what the term "voting" meant, it was definitively very important to the people here. She would probably never know. Then it occurred to her to simply look it up in a dictionary. She would do this after they had stopped drinking wine and chatting. Eventually, Sophie entered the room.

"This is my new slave, Sophie", said Dr. Evans' father.

"She reminds me of my ex-girlfriend", said Louis K., "she had red hair, too. And her name was Sophie, too".

"You said 'ex-girlfriend', what happened?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She cheated on me", said Louis K., "with nineteen men".

"So you broke up with her?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"I got nineteen nails made from stainless steel", said Louis K., "and rammed them into her body".

"Where is she now?", asked Dr. Evans.

"She's dead", said Louis K. cheerfully.

"So you broke up with your girlfriend by murdering her?", asked Dr. Evans, "That's extreme".

"Got you", said Louis K., adjusting the sleeve of his suit, "She's alive and well. She lives in Europe".

"That joke was just tasteless", said Dr. Evans' father. But after saying this, he still laughed politely. The group continued to chat about a variety of things, until Louis K. left, claiming that he had a train to catch. Dr. Evans' father offered him to use his carriage, an offer which Louis K. accepted. Maka spent the rest of the day following Samuel around.

The next day, Maka got send to check on Samantha. Maka expected to find Samantha still alive. The book said that most crucified slaves died on day three of the crucifixion, which had started today. When Maka arrived at Golgotha, she saw that Samantha was indeed still alive. Once Samantha noticed Maka she began begging for her live again. Her begging had become unenthusiastic and eerily quiet, it sounded like it was a zombie begging. Samantha must have given up hope completely. Or maybe the effects of dehydration were starting to set in. Or it was getting hard for her to breathe and she would lift herself of the sedile soon. Maka couldn't bear to listen or watch. She would just report that Samantha was still alive, even though this would probably change today. But still, Maka wanted to do something to help Samantha. Once she arrived at the mansion, she went to the office of Dr. Evans' father. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door.

"Who's there?", asked Dr. Evan's father.

"Maka, old master", said Maka.

"Enter", ordered Dr. Evans' father. Maka entered.

"What do you want?", asked Dr. Evans' father.

"Could I ask for a favor, old master?", asked Maka.

"Shoot", said Dr. Evans' father.

"Could you please grant Samantha mercy in form of the crurifragium, old master?", asked Maka. The term 'crurifragium', referred to the act of breaking the crucified person's legs. This made it almost impossible for them to push themselves up, thus drastically shortening their torment. It was generally inflicted on crucified slaves after some amount of time. Normally, the owner would tell the slave who was getting crucified before the crucifixion began when this mercy would be granted to them, but sometimes an owner decided to grant it later.

"I should punish you for wasting my time", said Dr. Evans' father, "And let me tell you, if you do anything to hasten Samantha's death, I'll personally see to it that you get a cross with view on hers. Have I made myself clear?".

"Yes, old master", said Maka, her voice was shaking.

"And now get back to work", ordered Dr. Evans' father, "Before I lose my temper".


	135. Guilt

Maka left the office of Dr. Evans' father and went into the slave quarter's, where she sat down in the main room. If there was just some way to shorten Samantha's torment without getting in trouble herself. Anything that involved injuring Samantha would get discovered. Therefore, she would have to find a way to kill Samantha so that it would look like a natural cause, for somebody who's been crucified. But what should she do? The obvious answer would be to poison Samantha. But how would Samantha drink the poison, assuming she would cooperate? She would have to get it up to her mouth. Maybe by putting it into a cup affixed to a long pole. Or maybe by soaking it into a sponge affixed to a long pole. Or maybe simply by climbing the cross. But which poison should Maka use. It occurred to her that she had no knowledge of poisons. And even if she knew a efficient poison, she would have to acquire it somehow. There was probably nothing she could do. And it was practically to late to do anything. Samantha would most likely die today. And even if she was taken down, she would probably still die from her injuries. Unless she received medical treatment. But Maka wasn't a doctor, and couldn't afford to pay one. There was no way Maka could safe or shorten the suffering of Samantha. The only one who could do this was Dr. Evans' father, and he had already said that he wouldn't do it. There was no hope for Samantha.

Maka spent most of morning sitting around the main hall of the slave quarters poking at the floor, until Samuel told her to check on the other captives for him. Maka did that and found nothing unusual to report, after which Samuel assigned her to clean yet another hallway. Maka finished just as it was time for lunch. She couldn't get her mind off Samantha. Maka felt as if she should have done something to help Samantha. But at the same time, she also knew that there was nothing she could have done without getting crucified herself. But this didn't seem to be a valid excuse for Maka. The mansion was rather high, if one jumped off its roof, one wouldn't survive the impact. What was she thinking? Maybe she should get drunk. But she didn't have access to any liquor. She would have to steal it from the wine cellar. What would happen to her if she was caught? It would probably depend on the type of liquor she stole. Maybe they would kill her for it. She decided not to risk it.

After lunch, Maka went upstairs. And upstairs. And upstairs, until she was at the mansion's top story. She went out onto the balcony and looked around. She had a terrific view. There were only a few structures in the city which were taller than the mansion, and the mansion was build on a hill. She could see the town. Since she didn't know this town very well, she couldn't tell what the different buildings in the town were. She tried to localize city hall, or the town square. She had no luck, it eluded her. But she also had a view of Golgotha. She could see the trees with dead bodies swinging from them, the poles with wheels on top, the poles that had people impaled on them, and the crosses. If she squinted, she could even see the dead bodies. She tried to localize Samantha's cross. She should be able to find it, after all, she placed it herself. She looked at one of the crosses. No, this wasn't it. But she was close, this must be the guy who got crucified for arson. He had been crucified a few crosses left of Samantha, so Maka would just have to go right. Or was it the other way around? Then she found the cross that Samantha was hanging from. Was it the right one? Yes, it was, she could tell from the position of the other crosses. Was Samantha still moving? It was hard to tell, being nailed to the cross, she could not really move around much. Was she lifting herself off the sedile? It looked like it. And now she went back down onto the sedile. Or maybe it was just Maka's imagination.

Maka's looked downwards, on the mansions garden. There was stone tiling under the balcony. Hard, her bones would splinter like dried wood. She looked back to Golgotha again. So much suffering. Maka looked at her hands. They had helped create such suffering, to save themselves. Better Samantha than her. But why? Maka still couldn't believe she was capable of doing something like that. But she only did it because she had no choice, her hands were clean. She was just following orders. She picked up the cross, placed it, whipped Samantha, drove her to Golgotha, assembled the cross, she had forced her to lie down on the cross, she had swung the mallet, she drove the nails into her flesh, she lifted up the cross. Samantha's blood was on her hands. Maka climbed over the balconies railing and stretched her arms out. The ground was calling her. Samantha's sreams of agony came forth from the ground, drowning out all other sounds. Calling her, demanding revenge, retribution. They drove Maka mad. What would it take to silence these screams? They wanted her blood. She would give it to them. They demanded retribution, and Maka would deliver. She took a deep breath and let her body fall forwards.


	136. Samantha's death

A hand grabbed Maka by the back of her dress and pulled her back, causing Maka to trip over the railing and fall on the balcony's floor. Getting up, she saw who had pulled her back. It was Samuel. Maka got up.

"I'll tell you, if you jump, you'll change your mind before you hit the ground", said Samuel, grabbing Maka's left arm.

"Let go off me", said Maka, struggling against Samuel's grip.

"Only if you promise not to jump", said Samuel.

"I will jump", said Maka.

"Okay then, just promise me you won't do it in the next hour and I'll let go", said Samuel.

"Okay, now let go off me", said Maka, struggling against his grip. Samuel let go off her hand, causing Maka to fall backwards and land in the stone railing. Samuel then proceeded to usher her down from the balcony and gestured her to follow him. He led her to the basement, where he assigned her to help Stephanie clean what appeared to be a private museum. Firearms were on display, all locked in display cases. He then left the two alone. Maka went to work along with Stephanie. Should she honor the promise she made to Samuel? She decided that she would not attempt to take her own live until the hour is up. But then she would jump.

What if the fall wouldn't cause instant death? What would be if she survived it? In that case, it would hurt, because even if she survived it, it would break several bones, which was extremely painful. And what would Samantha gain from Maka's death? Nothing. Maybe Samantha wanted Maka dead, maybe Samantha understood that Maka was just following orders. All of a sudden, Maka began to doubt her decision to take her own live. She still had a duty towards her homeland which she had to fulfill. She couldn't just go and kill herself. Since West Wyoming would win the war anyways, her contribution wouldn't be necessary. But West Wyoming was her home. It was her patriotic duty to help her homeland. She had to escape. She just had to. Maybe she could simply go and make a run for it right now. But would she succeed? Maybe. How did Samantha fail? Was it bad planning? Only Samantha could know. But Samantha might already be dead. Maybe it would be possible to talk to talk to Samantha if she went there quickly. But what would happen if she was caught sneaking out of the house? Maybe they would crucify her for it. But there was no roll call in the evening, so if she came back before morning, nobody would know. Unless her owner called for her, of course. Maybe it would be possible to get permission to leave the house. But Maka was not sure whether it would be a good idea to ask. When she asked Dr. Evans' father if she could break Samantha's legs, he was angry. The only thing that saved her from a punishment was probably the fact that she wasn't the property of Dr. Kenneth Evans, but of his son.

After they had finished cleaning the museum, Maka looked at a clock to see if the hour was over and went back up to the balcony. She looked down at the ground. She still felt guilty for what happened to Samantha, but the voices were gone. The ground looked not as nice as it did an hour ago. It looked frightening from up here. Maka stepped away from the railing. She wouldn't kill herself, it wasn't worth it. Even though she was a not free, she still had reasons to live. Things she didn't want to throw away by throwing herself off a building. Then Maka wondered whether Dr. Evans or his father knew about her suicide attempt. Did Samuel tell them? Maka sat down at the edge of the balcony. She wouldn't jump. She still had hope of returning to her homeland one day.

"Looks like you did change your mind", said Samuel.

"I guess your right", said Maka.

"It's a funny thing", said Samuel, "just an hour ago you wanted to end it all. Now you find that this decision doesn't hold up. Do you want to know why? We're all naturally afraid of death. Take for example crucifixion. Samantha always lifts herself up when her breath starts getting shallow, even though she could end her suffering by not pulling herself up. But still she does it, time and time again, under terrible agony. Even though she knows that she will only prolong her suffering that way. And she doesn't gain anything through it. There is no chance of getting rescued for her. Her situation is hopeless. But even in direst hopelessness, she clings to life, and her life clings to her. I would say that I find it pathetic, but that would make me hypocrite. This desire to live at all cost is a stain on the honor of all humanity".

"If that's how you see it, then why didn't you let me jump?", asked Maka.

"We probably both agree that killing Samantha would be doing her a favor", explained Samuel, "But unlike Samantha, you still have something to live for".

"I guess you're right", said Maka, "Even though I don't really know what".

"But you must have something, otherwise you would have jumped", said Samuel, "Humans naturally enjoy life"

"Well, thanks for saving my life", said Maka.

"Your welcome", said Samuel, "before I forget, you also have to clean the bathroom on the second floor, the one closest to the main staircase, report for more work once you're done". Then he left Maka alone on the balcony. Maka did as she was told and cleaned the bathroom and reported back for more work. In the evening, she was sent to check on Samantha again. By the time Maka arrived, Samantha was dead. A bird had started pecking at her flesh, soon more would follow. Maka remained calm and went back to the mansion to report her findings. After she had told them about Samantha's demise, she searched for a place where she could get some peace and quiet. She found it in form of a closet that was filled with old junk. Maka went into the closet, closed the door, and cried.


	137. Waking Dr Evans' father up

Maka did not know how much time she spent crying in the closet. She hoped that they wouldn't find her anytime soon, she just wanted to have some peace and quiet to mourn Samantha. After some time, Maka couldn't tell how much time had passed, she stopped crying. Her eyes were puffy and hurting from the all the crying. She found it best if she left the closet now. The hallway the closet was in was dark. She could barely see. She couldn't even see her hand before her eyes. It must be late at night. What if she cried all through the night and through the day and now it was night again? She would have missed roll call. They would think she was a runaway. They would crucify her. Maybe they would go easy on her if they found her still inside the house. But even then the punishment would be no joke. She would be put in the standing cell for two weeks. But that guy had only missed roll call. She was missing for an entire day, they would put her in the standing cell for an entire month. Or two. But wait, did Maka really spent an entire day crying? She started in the evening, now it was night. The question was, did she cry through the day? She noticed that she wasn't very thirsty. If she had spent a whole day crying, the effects of dehydration would be already noticeable.

But how could she get back to the slave quarters? She had a little bit of trouble navigating the house by herself, but how would she do it in pitch black darkness? Maybe she could find a light switch. They were on the wall, at the ends of the corridor. Maka started to inch forward, with her arms stretched out in front of her. Maybe she should find the wall first. But she had basically lost all sense of direction already, so she simply went into one direction, carefully inching her way forward. But what if she broke something? She certainly didn't want to spent a day of her life hanging by her hair. She got down on all fours. Anything breakable would be positioned on eye level. She inched forward. After what seemed like an eternity, she bumped into a wall. Should she go left or right now? She decided to go left. After some time she arrived at a door. She searched for the doorknob and entered the room, then she searched for the light switch. If the light in this room was on, some would shine into the hallway, making navigation much easier. After a fruitless search, she realized that this was the closet she had been crying in. She could even find where she had been sitting, a wet spot had formed from the tears. Maka left the room and continued searching along the wall. She found another door and opened it. On the inside, she found and hit the light switch. A bright light filled the room.

It was a bed room. Dr. Kenneth Evans' bedroom to be precise. He stirred. Maka didn't know what to do. He opened his eyes. She should probably run. Maka slammed the door shut and ran down the hall. She eventually slammed into another door. She ripped it open and went into the room on the other side. Then she hastily closed the door. Maybe Dr. Evans' father didn't recognize her. She searched for the light switch and found it. She was in another hallway. She had cleaned this hallway earlier this week. She now knew how to get back to the slave quarters. Then she realized that Dr. Evans father would be able to see the light under the door. She hastily turned the light off. Then she walked to where she remembered a door to be and opened it. She hoped she had not stumbled into another bedroom. She listened very quietly. There was no sound except her own breathing. She couldn't even hear Dr. Evans' father giving chase. Maybe he hadn't seen the light. But Maka was still too scared to leave the room or turn on a light. She would have to hide for a while, until she was sure that Dr. Evan's father had given up the pursuit. Maka sat there in the darkness, counting her breaths. A hundred, two hundred, three hundred, four hundred, five hundred, six hundred, seven hundred, eight hundred, nine hundred, a thousand, a thousand one hundred, a thousand two hundred, a thousand three hundred, a thousand four hundred, a thousand five hundred, a thousand six hundred, a thousand seven hundred, a thousand eight hundred, a thousand nine hundred, two thousand. If he was looking for her, he had probably already given up. Maka left the room, and slowly made her way back to the slave quarters. She didn't dare turn on any lights on on the way, she only inched forwards in total darkness. When she arrived in the room she was staying in, the alarm clock rung.

Maka pretended to be getting up from bed. Even thought she wasn't really one of Dr. Kenneth Evans' slaves, she still had to report for roll call. She didn't want to look all bleary-eyed, so she took a shower, during which she thoroughly cleaned her face. Then it was time for roll call. It went by smoothly. Everybody quickly got to work once roll call was over. Maybe Dr. Evans' father had forgotten about the incident last night. Maka sure hoped so. During breakfast, Samuel announced that they had to report for roll call right after breakfast, an announcement that was not really welcomed by the slaves. After Samuel had left the room. They already started talking about, complaining, and wondering why they had to report for a second roll call in less than an hour.

After breakfast, everybody went into the main room, where they continued to chat. This went on for a few minutes, until Samuel came, everybody quickly found a position in the rows. Then Dr. Evans' father arrived.

"As one of you knows, somebody went into my room a three in the morning and woke me up", said Dr. Evans' father, he made a rather long break.

"Maybe it wasn't one of them, but rather an assassin, master", suggested Samuel.

"I don't think an assassin would have turned the lights on", said Dr. Evans' father, "Anyway, I want whoever of you did this to step forward". Nobody moved. Dr. Evan's father waited for some time. Then he walked through the lines, looking at every single one. He looked at Maka. Then he went on to the next one. After he went completely through the lines, he went back to the front.

"Stephanie", called Dr. Evans' father.

"Yes, master", said Stephanie, shaking in fear.

"Three weeks in the standing cell", ordered Dr. Evans' father, "You know what to do, Samuel".


	138. Admitting guilt

"Yes, master", said Samuel. Maka was relieved that she got away with it.

"Please, master, I swear I'm innocent", begged Stephanie. Dr. Evans' father turned to leave the room. As Maka saw Samuel dragging Stephanie to the standing cell, she began feeling guilty again. Now she could easily prevent unnecessary suffering. Even if they put her in the standing cell, they would have to take her out in one week, because then her owner would travel back home. But Maka hated the time she had already spent in a standing cell. She did not want to go back into a standing cell. But if she didn't do anything, Stephanie would be in there for a lot longer than she would be. Samuel had was already halfway out of the room. What should she do? The way she saw it, there were two options, she could either keep quiet and not get punished, but accept that Stephanie, whom she was quite fond of, got punished instead, or she could tell them that it was her who woke Dr. Evans' father up, and get punished, but that way Stephanie would be spared. The decision was killing her. She couldn't bear to see Samuel drag Stephanie away, but she also couldn't bear the thought of Samuel dragging her to the standing cell.

Samuel had reached the doorway. Maka followed them, but she kept her distance. She did not want to get noticed. She still wasn't sure if she wanted to step forward or avoid punishment. She knew that she would feel extremely guilty about this if she didn't step forward. But she also knew that she would feel extremely miserable if she spent a week in the standing cell. What should she do. She could not muster the courage to speak up. Samuel had reached the stair to the basement. Soon, Stephanie would be standing in the standing cell. Maka had to prevent it, but how? By telling the truth, obviously. But was there another way? There had to be. Maybe she could overpower Samuel and then escape with Stephanie. But then their owners would put a high bounty on their heads. They would get caught and brought back, especially because they had no way to get rid of their collars. Once they were back, they would get crucified, like Samantha. "Maka – runaway slave" and "Stephanie – runaway slave". Maka shuddered, violence was not an option here. But what was? Maybe she could convince Dr. Evans' father that Stephanie was innocent. But he would not listen to her. At most he would punish her, too. Maybe she could convince her owner that Stephanie was innocent. Then maybe he would argue the case to his father, and since he was a very good lawyer, he would probably be able to convince his father. But this plan was even dumber than the first one.

Samuel had reached the basement and was dragging Stephanie towards the standing cell now. Maybe Maka could sneak into Samuel's quarters and steal his keys. Since he had a key to the standing cells, she would then be able to get Stephanie out of the standing cell. Stephanie would then be able to hide in the basement for the duration of her punishment, and return to the standing cell once she was due to be released from the standing cell. But they would feed her daily. So Stephanie would have to return to the standing cell daily, or she would be discovered. But the keys would have to be returned to Samuel without him knowing as soon as possible, because if he found them to be missing, he would know that something is up. Then he would know what Stephanie did. He would tell it to his master, who would then have Stephanie crucified. So in order for the plan to work, they needed someone who could reliably steal the keys and bring them back unnoticed several times a day, for three weeks. Assuming they would find someone able to do this amongst the other slaves was simply delusional. Maka had to scrap yet another plan.

Samuel was only one hallway away from the standing cells. Maka thought desperately how she could stop him. But there didn't seem to be a way. Maybe she could dig a tunnel through the wall to Stephanie's cell, to get her out. But that would take more than three weeks. And it would get noticed, which would result in Stephanie or her getting crucified. Maybe she could build a perfect decoy that looked exactly like Stephanie, and then switch Stephanie with the decoy. But while Maka could knit and stitch, she wasn't that good. It would get noticed. Maybe she could learn magic and use that magic to teleport Stephanie out of the standing cell. But only witches could cast spells, and Maka wasn't a witch. Medusa was. Maybe Maka could locate and recruit Medusa for her cause. But how would she succeed at something that so many others had failed to achieve, including a special government unit trained especially for this sort of thing. Samuel had arrived in the room with the standing cells and was already forcing Stephanie to disrobe.

"Wait!", yelled Maka.

"What is?", asked Samuel.

"I'm really the one who woke old master up", said Maka, she then proceeded to explain the events of last night.

"I believe you", said Samuel, a look on relief formed on Stephanie's face, "But I have order to put Stephanie in the standing cell".

"Could you please just talk to old master", pleaded Maka.

"Alright, I'll lock you to in this room in the meantime", said Samuel, he left the room and locked the door behind him, locking Stephanie and Maka in.

"Thanks for telling the truth", said Stephanie, "I appreciate that".

"You're welcome", whispered Maka.

"I'm sorry you'll be put in the standing cell now", said Stephanie. They continued to wait in silence, until Samuel came back.

"Master says that he is glad that the true culprit has come forward, even if a bit late", said Samuel, "He talked to his son on this matter, who agreed to put Maka in the standing cell for the remainder of his stay here". Maka knew what this meant. She disrobed completely and stepped into one of the cells.

"What is with me?", asked Stephanie.

"You don't get punished because you are innocent", said Samuel, he then closed the door of Maka's cell, locking her in claustrophobic darkness.


	139. Goodbyes

Maka tried to pass the time as good as she could, but the lack of stimuli made it difficult. She tried to go to sleep, as sleep would make the week she would have to spend in the standing cell pass much quicker. But like the last time, falling asleep proved to be rather difficult. Since she couldn't go to the bathroom she had no choice but to urinate and defecate right where she was standing. The urine and the feces caused her feet to itch. She tried scratching them against the wall, but she didn't even have enough room to pull off such a simple maneuver without difficulties. The cell smelled terribly. And the smell was attracting flies, which flew around her and annoyed her. They must be getting in when she was fed, with each bread and with each bottle of water, more flies came. Her whole body was aching. But it was the worst after she had just slept. After she slept she stood up again to alleviate the pain somewhat, but she was already starting to ache from standing for so long. And the punishment just dragged on and on. It didn't take long for Maka to loose her feeling for time completely, the only hints at the time where when she was fed, but one of the slaves who fed her complained about how the feeding times were randomized, so not even her meals could give her a hint at the time. With each breath she took, she hoped that the next moment the door would be opened and she would be released from this tiny prison. But that moment didn't come. Until one day, it did.

Maka fell out of the standing cell. As she lied there, glad that she could finally lie down again, Samuel told her to clean herself and her cell, because her owner wished to depart in two hours. Maka lied there, thankful that this torment had finally ended. After a short time she rolled over and looked at herself. Her feet were covered in feces. She took the rag Samuel had left her and cleaned her feet, since she didn't want to drag it through the entire house. Then she went upstairs to take a shower.

"Hey, Maka!", said a male slave who was showering, too.

"What is?", asked Maka.

"Just wanted to say that I think it's impressive how you told the truth about what happened last week", said the slave, "I don't know if I would have had the courage".

"Thanks", said Maka. Several other slaves congratulated her, too. After she had finished showering, another slave offered her to clean out her cell for her. Maka would have accepted, but she was worried that they both might get in trouble if that was found out. So she thanked her for the offer and went to fetch some cleaning supplies, a rag, a small shovel, a bucket with water and an empty bucket. At her cell, she then proceeded to shovel the feces into the empty bucket, before she used the water and the rag to clean out the cell. When she was done, she carried the bucket to the compost pile behind the stables, out of sight of the mansion. After she had done so, she went into the dining room in the slave quarters to eat. But there was no food left. Then one of the kitchen slaves told her that he had saved a plate of vegetables for her. Maka was very grateful and ate the vegetables. She still had some time left before her owner would depart. She wanted to use this time to say goodbye to Samuel and Stephanie, but maybe she would have to pack her owner's suitcase. She went upstairs to his bedroom and knocked on the door. After she got permission to enter, she saw a slave packing her owner's suitcase. So she went to find Stephanie. She found Samuel.

"Samuel, could you tell me where Stephanie is?", asked Maka.

"Cleaning the balcony on the second floor", said Samuel.

"Thank you for showing me your work, for saving my life, for talking to old master for me", said Maka, "to make it short, thank you. And Goodbye".

"Goodbye, I hope I'll see you again someday", said Samuel, "Even though it's not likely".

"I hope I'll see you again someday, too", said Maka, even though she knew that this was unlikely. She then went to find Stephanie.

"I must thank you again for telling the truth earlier", said Stephanie, "I don't know how many people would have done so".

"I just couldn't sit there and watch an innocent get punished", said Maka, "Goodbye".

"Goodbye, maybe we'll see each other again someday", said Stephanie, hugging Maka. They hugged each other for some time, but eventually it was time for them to separate. Maka then went to the anteroom, where her owner's suitcase was already to be found. But where was her owner? She decided to look in the slave quarters, not because she suspected him to be there, but because she saw an excuse to get a last look this place where she spent a week of her life. Surprisingly, she found Dr. Evans' there. He was hugging Jamie, as he bid farewell to her. Then he hugged Nora, bidding farewell to her as well. Then he told Maka to follow him as he left the house. On the way he said goodbye to his mother, too. Maka grabbed the suitcase and followed Dr. Evans. He boarded a coach that was apparently owned by his father, because there was a slave driving the coach. Maka once again had to ride on the coach box. At the train station Dr. Evans bought tickets for the train. Maka would once again get to ride third class, while Dr. Evans bought himself a first class ticket.


	140. Train ride back

During the train ride, Maka sat next to a young red haired woman. She looked a lot like Sophie. On some level, Maka wanted to talk to her, but she just couldn't think of a way to start the conversation. The red haired girl played around with a lighter. It was a very ornate lighter, and judging by the woman's clothing, she was dressed in very simple, ragged and partially burned clothes, in fact, Maka was better dressed than her, if only on account of the fact that her dress was without tears or burns, too expensive for her to afford. Maka concluded that it was some kind of heirloom. The lighter was made of silver, with golden letters reading, "Hodie Nocte Corpora Eorum Ardebunt Deinde Aeternitate Animis". Maka wondered what it meant. Then a conductor came along to check everybody's ticket. The young woman's ticket looked slightly burned along the edges, but the conductor still accepted it. Maka then went to check whether her owner needed anything. On the way she contemplated how odd it was that this woman waved her obviously very expensive lighter around without worrying about robbers and thieves. Maka knocked at the door of her owner's carriage and was called in.

"Do you need anything, master?", asked Maka.

"No, not at the moment", said Dr. Evans.

"May I ask you a question, master?", asked Maka.

"Shoot", said Dr. Evans.

"What does 'Hodie Nocte Corpora Eorum Ardebunt Deinde Aeternitate Animis' mean, master?", asked Maka.

"Where did you hear that?", asked Dr. Evans.

"On a lighter the woman next to me was playing with, master", said Maka.

"Now that is worrisome", said Dr. Evans.

"Why, master?", asked Maka.

"It means 'Tonight their bodies will burn, then the souls for all eternity'", said Dr. Evans. So whoever build this lighter intended it to be used for arson, and this lady seemed to enjoy fires.

"Is there a name for people who enjoy arson, master?", asked Maka.

"Pyromaniac", said Dr. Evans, "Anyway, fetch me a bottle of beer". He then handed her money to go and buy a beer for him.

"Yes, master", said Maka. Over the course of the day, her owner ordered several meals and drinks, until he send her back to her seat when he went to sleep. Maka felt a bit uneasy sleeping next to this pyromaniac, but she probably wasn't dangerous. And what were the odds that this woman would light her on fire? Maka decided not to worry about it. Since she spent the last week in standing cell, she quickly fell asleep, despite the fact that her knees still ached. Maka woke up in the morning and immediately went to see if her owner needed something. A few hours later, the train arrived in New Death city. Dr. Evans took a coach to his house.

Once they arrived at the house, Dr. Evans ordered Maka to unpack the trunk before he went to check through the mail that arrived during his absence. After Maka had finished unpacking her owner's trunk, she reported back to him, and he told her to clean the house. Maka started cleaning the kitchen. After a while, Dr. Evans told her to weed the lawn first. Maka saw why this task took priority, the lawn hadn't be weeded for two weeks. So she started weeding the lawn.

"Hi Maka", said Jonathan, "where have you been". Maka told him about her owner visiting his parents and taking her along.

"The Evans actively breed in genetic defects like albinism", said Louis K., "which is the opposite of what you'd do if you were breeding slaves". Maka and Jonathan didn't see Louis K. coming. Maka was perplexed about his comment, and feared that Jonathan might be in trouble.

"What did you say about my family?", asked Dr. Evans, who must have heard it through the open window.

"That your family deliberately picks marriages so that you all marry other albinos", said Louis K.

"Only male descendants", said Dr. Evans.

"And then there's the fact that you are engaged to your cousin", said Louis K.

"She's my first cousin once removed", said Dr. Evans, "there's a difference".

"Yeah, whatever", said Louis K., "Speaking of breeding slaves, maybe we could use Jonathan here as a stud to breed Maka". Maka looked at him wide eyed.

"The question is, would their children share their positive qualities", said Dr. Evans.

"There's only one way to find out", said Louis K.. Jonathan raised his hand.

"What is?", asked Louis K.

"May I remind you that I'm an eunuch, master", said Jonathan.

"Right", said Louis K., scratching his kin.

"If you're castrated, then how come you can grow a beard?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Eunuch doesn't mean castrated, it means sterilized", said Louis K.

"I remember reading something like that", said Dr. Evans.

"Look", said Louis K., pointing at a branch that had fallen from a tree and was starting to sprout from the ground, "Wouldn't it be great if we were capable of doing that?".

"Yeah, we wouldn't have to waste time with our wives", said Dr. Evans, "we could just chop a finger off when we need an heir".

"Sadly we can't do that", said Louis K. They continued to discuss how sad it was that they couldn't reproduce asexually. Maka and Jonathan went back to their respective tasks. After Maka was done weeding the lawn she went back inside her owner's house and the rest of the day went by without any incidents.


	141. Ninon

The next day, Maka saw the red haired pyromaniac again. In the afternoon, she drinking tea with Louis K. in his garden. Maka wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation, so she opened a window.

"So, Ninon, what do you want?", asked Louis K.

"I grew up in an orphanage", said Ninon.

"And you want what?", asked Louis K., "revenge, burn the place to ground? If you need weapons, I can get you anything you might desire. At a price, of course. I accept payment in all stable American currencies, gold, silver, gasoline, slaves, ebony, spices, narcotics, tobacco, weapon grade uranium, plutonium,...".

"I don't want to buy anything from you", said Ninon.

"Then are you looking for work?", asked Louis K., "In my profession, it's inevitable that one eventually runs into problems, problems I can't all take care off by myself, so I would be willing to pay good money to anyone who can solve them for me".

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm not here for work either, even though I could certainly use a bit of extra cash here and there", said Ninon.

"Okay, then what do you want?", asked Louis K.

"The only thing of my parents that I have is this", said Ninon, showing him a letter, "you seem to have signed it".

"Let me see", said Louis K., taking the letter, "Yes, so you are Sophie's daughter?".

"And yours, probably", said Ninon.

"Actually there's only a one in twenty chance", said Louis K.

"Why one in twenty?", asked Ninon.

"Because your mother was sleeping with twenty men, myself included, at the time you were conceived", said Louis K.

"Twenty?", asked Ninon, sounding surprised, "Are you sure".

"Yes, I'm sure", said Louis K., "when I found out, I was even more shocked than you are now".

"So, where can I find the other nineteen men?", asked Ninon.

"I'm the last one of them who's still alive", said Louis K.

"What happened to them?", asked Ninon.

"Oh, different things", said Louis K., "the world is a dangerous place, ever since the golden age ended. Some of these nineteen became bounty hunters, until they were eventually killed by a bounty which fought back. Some of them got ill and died a natural death. Some of them got executed for various crimes. Fact is, they're probably all dead".

"How do you know?", asked Ninon.

"After we found out that our mutual girlfriend was cheating on us, we all decided that she was not worth fighting for", explained Louis K., "so we dumped her, then we went to celebrate that fact. Well, some of us celebrated, some went and drowned their sorrow. During my travels, I tried to somewhat keep in touch with them. Dropping by when I was in town, or so. Because of my job, I also know just about every bounty hunter, so I generally find out if one of them bites the dust. They all died before me".

"Wasn't there at least one who chose to seek a quiet family life?", asked Ninon.

"I don't know about them, but I never had an intimate relationship with a woman ever again", said Louis K..

"Sad", said Ninon. Maka could probably eavesdrop better from the yard. So she decided to go outside to rake the leaves which had fallen over night. As she started to rake, a phone rang.

"Excuse me", said Louis K. as he left the table, leaving his potential bastard daughter alone. Eventually Ninon started to walk around the yard. Jonathan asked if there was anything he could get her, calling her "young mistress". Ninon declined politely and went on to look greedily at the leaf pile Maka was raking up. Then she resumed playing with her lighter. Louis K. remained absent. Maka raked the last leaf onto the pile. After she was done, she decided to chat with Jonathan for a bit. After some time, she heard a sizzling noise. Jonathan wore an expression of fright. Maka turned around and saw that the leaf pile was on fire. Ninon must have lit it. But how could Maka put the flames out again? She needed water. Lots of water. Maka ran into the basement to grab a bucket. She ran into the kitchen to fill the bucket. She ran outside and poured the water on the pile of burning leaves.

"Why on earth is my yard on fire?", yelled Dr. Evans. Before Maka could answer he ran back into the house. Maka filled her bucket again. She poured it over the burning leaves. As she went to fill her bucket a third time, Dr. Evans ran outside with a bucket. He ran past Maka. After a few minutes and countless runs for water, the fire finally went out.

"You have a lot of explaining to do", said Dr. Evans, "how did that leaf pile catch fire?"

"Louis K.'s guest did this, master", said Maka, "she lit the leaf pile on fire".

"Am I supposed to believe that?", asked Dr. Evans.

"It is true, master", said Maka.

"I'm on fire!", yelled Jonathan, as he came running out into the yard. He was indeed on fire.

"What's the ruckus?", yelled Louis K., as he came out into the yard, his jaw dropped as he saw Jonathan running around burning.

"Stop running!", ordered Louis K. Jonathan didn't obey.

"Stop running!", ordered Louis K. Jonathan stopped running.

"Lie on the ground and roll around!", ordered Louis K. As Jonathan did this, Dr. Evans remembered the full bucket off water he was still holding and poured it over Jonathan, putting the fire out.

"You okay", asked Louis K.

"Yes, master", said Jonathan, "it was mostly my clothes that burned".

"Who did this?", asked Louis K.

"Your daughter, master", said Jonathan.

"I knew it", said Louis K., then he spoke rather quietly, so that Ninon couldn't hear it, "If you want to beat her up, I'll look the other way".

"Thank you, master", said Jonathan. He got up and walked over to Ninon, who already guessed what Jonathan wanted to do and tried to run away. But Jonathan was quicker and caught up to her, as she cried for help.


	142. Push forwards

"This woman is your daughter?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Possibly", said Louis K.

"Possibly?", asked Dr. Evans.

"My ex-girlfriend is her mother", said Louis K., "the one I told you about".

"So there's only a five percent chance?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Your slave beat me up", complained Ninon, with a black eye. "I demand that you punish him".

"You set him on fire", said Louis K., "The only person allowed to set Jonathan on fire is me".

"But that doesn't give him a right to beat me up", complained Ninon.

"Maybe you shouldn't set people on fire", said Louis K. Jonathan came back outside, he had gone inside to change out of his burned clothes.

"Here he is, I demand that you apologize", ordered Louis K.

"No, I won't", said Ninon. Louis K. slapped her and grabbed her by her ear. She tried to break free, but Louis K. easily dodged or blocked her strikes. He twisted the ear. Each time Ninon tried to hit him, he started to twist harder. She took out a knife. Louis K. grabbed the knife hand with his left hand. He twisted the hand, forcing her fingers open in the mean time. He took Ninon's knife. After a few minutes of struggling, Ninon gave up.

"I said apologize", repeated Louis K..

"I'm sorry, Jonathan", said Ninon.

"For what?", demanded Louis K., twisting Ninon's ear a bit more.

"I'm sorry for setting you on fire, Jonathan", said Ninon.

"I accept your apology, young mistress", said Jonathan. Maka was struggling not to break down laughing. Louis K. reached into Ninon's pocket and grabbed her lighter.

"Hey, that's mine!" complained Ninon.

"You can have it back later, you're grounded for the time being", said Louis K., releasing his grip on Nonin's ear. Nonin stomped off towards the house, rubbing her ear all the way.

"No daughter of mine is allowed to behave in such a way", said Louis K..

"You remind me of my old governess", said Dr. Evans.

"You have to be stern with the kids, or they'll walk all over you", said Louis K..

"That sounds like something my old governess would say", said Dr. Evans.

"How old is she?", asked Louis K.

"Sixty one", said Dr. Evans.

"That's a nice number", said Louis K., "what is your favorite number?". Maka couldn't believe how quickly the subject changed to numbers. Maka wondered what she should do about the pile of burned leaves. Maybe she could dispose of it in the forest. Maka decided to do just that. She grabbed the rake and raked the leaves into the forest. Then she came back. Louis K. was talking about how something called "currency fluctuation" affected his job. Dr. Evans wore a tortured expression the like of which Maka had seen plenty of times while she was in school, on her classmates faces during math class. Maybe there was something Maka could do to interrupt the speech Louis K. was delivering. That way, her owner could stop listening to it without seeming rude. Then he would reward her for saving him from being bored to death. Then Maka remembered that she was more likely to get in trouble if she interrupted Louis K.'s speech. So she decided to leave her owner to his fate.

"I'm sorry, but I need to get back to work", said Dr. Evans, "there's a very important case I'm supposed to be working on right now. But I would also love to hear what you have to say. So I'll have Maka here listen to your speech, so that she can later give me the details".

"Yes, master", said Maka. Louis K. started over with his speech. He started to explain what money is and what it is used for. Nothing Maka didn't know. Then he went on to explain several theories about how currencies came to be. Then he went on about how the value of currency changes. This was when Maka couldn't follow the speech any more. She just hoped her owner was only making an excuse to not have to listen to his neighbor. Louis K.'s speech continued into a mix of theory and personal anecdotes. As the sun started to set, Louis K. told her the story of how he bartered over liquor in an European country called France. Eventually, Louis K. finished his speech and Maka went back inside.

"I admire how Louis K. can go on to talk hours upon hours about such a boring topic", said Dr. Evans, "while making it even more boring. Anyway, prepare dinner now".

"Yes, master", said Maka. While her owner was eating dinner, Maka looked through the bookshelf in his living room, for the book Dr. Evans' father had read when he was visiting his son. How could Maka have forgotten about it? The manual of slave holding was her best bet at finding out how these collars worked, what they're made off and maybe even what could cut them. Then, after she had read it, she would only have to acquire the right tools. Then she could make a run for it and cut her collar on the way. Once she was rid off it, bounty hunters would not recognize her as a runaway slave. Then she could return to her homeland. Now she only needed to find a way to read this book without her owner noticing. He had caught her trying something behind his back once, he would not tolerate it a second time. In fact, Maka was pretty sure that she would be crucified if she got caught. But as the president of West Wyoming says, in a time of crisis, you have to push forward.


	143. How to catch runaways

After Maka had eaten for herself, she waited for an opportunity to read the book. However, there was none, and Maka went to sleep once she was allowed to. The next day, as she was raking leaves once again, she saw Ninon setting individual leaves on fire, one by one. She held them to her lighter's flame and smiled as they burned up. Maybe Ninon knew something that could help Maka. Who knew what this woman went through to get to Louis K., while waving this lighter of hers around publicly, which must make her a target for robbery. She must have a lot of street smarts.

"Good morning, madam", said Maka.

"Morning", said Ninon.

"I see you got your lighter back", said Maka.

"I had to promise I wouldn't light anything valuable on fire", said Ninon.

"Makes sense", said Maka, "I think what you did yesterday is called arson".

"Shut up", said Ninon. Maka did shut up, contemplating only how she could have done this better. After lunch, Dr. Evans had to leave for court. Before he left the house, he ordered dinner to be ready at seven o'clock instead of six o'clock. Maka saw an opportunity to read the book. After her owner had left, started cleaning the library. She looked out of the window regularly, until he had left left the street. Maka continued cleaning the library for a bit longer, in case he suddenly decided to come back. Once she found the coast was clear, she went into the living room and pulled the book from the bookshelf. She sat down with her back to the bookshelf. That way, she was sitting somewhat comfortable and if she would hear her owner come back, she could just put the book back into the bookcase. She opened the book and began looking over the table of contents. One chapter was titled "Acquiring slaves – slave markets and auctions", another "basic needs – housing and food", "Assigning workload to maximize productivity", "Maintaining order – punishing slaves", then there was a chapter that caught her eye, "Preventing escape attempts", the following chapter, "recapturing and dealing with runaways" seemed interesting, too. These chapters were, like all others, divided in at least a dozen sub chapters. The next chapter dealt with execution methods, titled "Ultima ratio – capital punishment", it apparently had a sub chapter for each execution method. One was titled "The roman way – crucifixion", then there was "getting under their skin – flaying alive", "One last boat ride – scaphism", "A feast for crows – the breaking wheel", "Keep them warm for the rest of their life – burning at the stake", "A game of caution and deliberation – death by a thousand cuts", "Let it stand for a while – boiling alive", it went on and listing various execution methods. The author must have put a lot of effort into it, simply reading the titles made Maka shake in fear. She decided to read "Preventing escape attempts".

The chapter went into detail about what could cause a slave to want to escape. It listed reasons such as homesickness, problems with his fellow slaves, trouble with his master, like trying to avoid another punishment, or simply a desire to be free. The book recommended occasionally releasing slaves, that way the slaves who want to be free would put more effort into impressing their master rather than preparing an escape. The book then mentioned that it's important to give the slaves a lot of work to do, so that they would not have enough time to properly plan an escape. Then the book went over warning sings that would indicate that the slave was planning an escape, like an interest in maps, attempting to acquire tools to cut through their collar, hording food and water as travel rations or stealing money. Then the book explained which tools could be used to cut a slave collar. Since the metal interwoven in the collar was very hard, the only material able to cut it was diamond. Cutting it with a diamond file would take roughly a day of uninterrupted work. Removing it with a disc grinder would only take a few seconds, if a corresponding disc was installed on it. This, however, was very dangerous, and could easily kill the slave. Therefore, if a disc grinder was discovered, one could conclude he has an accomplice, as using the disc grinder to cut the collar on someone else was much less dangerous for both persons. The book warned not to tolerate slaves possessing such objects, unless they needed it for their duties. Maka skipped most of the remaining chapter, since she didn't have much time. But that way, she could read the next chapter a bit.

Apparently the reason why it's important to recapture runaway slaves was to save face in front of the remaining slaves. If a slave escaped and got away, the other slaves would start to think that they had a chance at getting away, too. This could cause significant damage. Therefore it was important to recapture and punish runaway slaves. The book didn't go much into how to actually capture them yourself, instead, it recommended outsourcing such a job to bounty hunters. But then the book went to list information that should be provided on the wanted poster. The slaves high, his country of origin, whether or not he has free relatives and friends and if yes, where to find them, or where he would look for them. By knowing where a slave would run to, a bounty hunter would know where to look. Then the book recommended another book titled "bounty hunting for dummies". The book recommended to execute the runaway slave after he was recaptured, in order to scare the remaining slaves, or his replacement, or both. That way the other slaves would think twice about running away. Maka had to admit, seeing Samantha hang from the cross was quite an impression. Maka closed the book again. There was a lot of work to get done if she didn't want to arouse suspicion.


	144. Jonathan's past

Maka worked really hard to avoid arousing suspicion. Luckily, when her owner arrived, he didn't bother inspecting Maka's work. He just sat down to eat. Later in the evening, he played the piano for a bit before he allowed Maka to go to sleep. As Maka was already heading out of the room, he called, "wait, come back!".

"Yes, master?", asked Maka.

"What have you done while I was away?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka listed all the duties she did while he was away, but she obviously didn't say that she read the book behind his back. To make it seem like she did more stuff, she listed things she already did yesterday.

"Didn't you clean the guest bathroom yesterday?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka.

"Just don't screw up again", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, surprised about his leniency.

"You may retire for the evening", said Dr. Evans.

"Thank you, master", said Maka and went to bed. There was a storm over night, which caused many leaves to fall. Thus it was no surprise that both Maka and Jonathan ended up doing raking leaves.

"Say, do you know what a disc grinder is?", asked Maka.

"I suppose it grinds discs", said Jonathan, "why do you ask?".

"I read that these things can cut through a slave collar in a matter of seconds", whispered Maka.

"You know that if our master's hear that, we'll both get executed?", asked Jonathan, "Like Samantha. Well, that means you'll get crucified, I'll get skinned alive".

"How will they find us if after we got rid of our slave collars?", asked Maka.

"Even if you manage to escape, where will you go?", asked Jonathan.

"West Wyoming", said Maka.

"Well, nice for you, but I don't have anywhere to go", said Jonathan, "before I got enslaved, I worked as a day laborer. I had a choice of whether I wanted to sleep in a four bunk bed or eat more than one meal a day, if I found work, more than half the time, I didn't. Here, I get three meals a day and a warm bed. Why should I escape?" Maka had to admit that his argument was pretty sound.

"And what about a revolt?", asked Maka.

"If you don't stop talking about these things", said Jonathan, "I'll tell your owner what you're up to".

"Wouldn't you implicate yourself as well?", asked Maka.

"What? No, the fact that I inform them would disperse all suspicion", said Jonathan, "I would probably get rewarded".

"Okay, I wont talk about escape anymore", said Maka.

"Good", said Jonathan. A long silence followed.

"How did you become a slave, anyway?", asked Maka.

"Through war", said Jonathan.

"Wouldn't you have fought in the war?", asked Maka.

"The country had a lottery to decide who got drafted", said Jonathan, "My name wasn't pulled. During the war, finding work was no problem, but everything became so expensive. As my country was loosing the war, they evacuated the settlements close to the front line. The enemy army caught up and captured everybody. I was among them".

"I feel bad for the citizens of the New Confederates", said Maka, "But they have it coming".

"I think they're more likely to win the war", said Jonathan, "Master bet on them, and he is usually never wrong about something like that".

"Well, I guess he's wrong about this", said Maka.

"If you think so", said Jonathan. They continued to rake the lawns of their respective owners in total silence. Maka finished a bit earlier than Jonathan, so she went back inside her owner's house. She thought about what Jonathan had said. Apparently, everybody believed that West Wyoming was going to loose the war. In West Wyoming, they would have been sentenced to twenty five years of reformative labor, or worse, for saying something that treasonous. Well, these people weren't as enlightened as her. She wanted to help her homeland fight the war, but on the other hand, she also wanted to see their faces when they turned out to be wrong. But that no reason not to help her homeland. But how would she help her homeland once she had escaped? She would probably help out somewhere, but that wasn't really relevant now. She had to focus on her escape. She had to find a disc grinder, or a diamond file. But where to look for these things? There weren't many people who could help her, and what Jonathan said earlier was upsetting her. A slave would get rewarded if he turned in another slave who was planning an escape. She couldn't trust her fellow captives. Maybe this was the reason Samantha said she wouldn't try to run away, out of fear of someone betraying her. That would mean that Samantha had planned her escape probably better than Maka was planning it, and still didn't succeed. But the bounty on her head had been rather large. Her replacement, Sophie, was only worth twenty five million. If Samantha was worth as much, the bounty was twelve times higher than her value. Maka realized that such a high sum would indeed mean that she wouldn't be safe anywhere except for West Wyoming, because West Wyoming protects its citizens. Maybe Maka should just make a mad dash for her homeland. But they would be expecting that. Maka didn't know what she should do, it would be something she would have to figure out later. What she had to focus on now was to get the necessary tools for the job. Where could she get a diamond file or a disc grinder. There was no one she could ask. She would just have to keep her eyes and ears open.


	145. Embezzlement

The next morning, Maka was sent to buy bread. On the way back she found Louis K. and Ninon walking around while chatting.

"So, since we're family, I though you could help out in my business a bit", said Louis K. to his daughter, "I'll pay good money". Maka was curious and they did not seem to be aware of her presence, so she decided to follow them and eavesdrop on them.

"What do you want?", asked Ninon.

"There's someone I have a mild disagreement with", explained Louis K., "I need you to meditate the situation. Payment is two hundred million".

"Ok",said Ninon. Louis K pulled a folder out of his suit and handed it to her.

"All details are in there, plus another sixty million to cover your expenses", said Louis K., "Spend it wisely. Study the documents and memorize them, then destroy them". Ninon was reading the documents.

"So when you said mediate, you meant...", said Ninon.

"Don't say it aloud", said Louis K.

"Okay, I'll do that", said Ninon.

"I expect the situation to be resolved in thirty days", said Louis K.. Then both of them remained silent. Maka turned around and walked to her owner's house. She wondered what she should do. Tell the police? But if the matter went to trial, she would get tortured. Even if she cooperated. Maka decided that she would not tell anyone about what just happened. Whoever this poor guy was that Louis K. wanted to be dealt with, there was nothing she could do for him. Maka was thankful that her father had never made her do any wet work. On the other hand, her father was a farmer and a decorated war veteran, while Ninon's father was an arms dealer. Back at her owner's house she put the bread away and prepared breakfast. Maka's search for a diamond file or a disc grinder didn't really go anywhere that day, she just found out that her owner didn't keep one in his house. In the afternoon, Maka asked Samuel about Ninon, who told her that she left sometime before lunch. Maka then asked Jonathan if he found it strange that Ninon left so suddenly. He simply stated that Ninon was, unlike him and Maka, free to go wherever she wanted to go, and that based on how much her father enjoyed travel, it was not surprising for her to enjoy travel, too. Therefore, it was not that unusual for Ninon to leave suddenly, considering how adventurous the young folk are. Maka thought that the explanation seemed to be rather rehearsed.

After a while, Maka found that she shouldn't worry about what Ninon was up to. After all, it most likely didn't affect her, and she had more important things to do, like preparing her escape. But no excuse presented itself to wander around town and to look for a store that sold disc grinders. But even if she found a store, she didn't know if they would sell her a disc grinder. And even if, she wouldn't be able to afford it, since she had no money. But where could she get some money? She would have to steal it. But Maka didn't even want to think about what would happen if she was caught stealing from her owner. She would have to find another victim. Maybe she could steal from Louis K.. He wasn't there most of the time. But Jonathan was there, and he would not help her with her plans. In fact, if she broke into Louis K.'s house and stole his stuff, Jonathan would probably have no choice but to inform his owner, who would then inform Maka's owner. And if she managed not to get caught, Jonathan would get in trouble. She didn't want to get him into any trouble. But what would the punishment for burglary be? Maka remembered how that beggar got executed for stealing a piece of bread. So even free people got executed for stealing stuff. They would have no mercy on a captive. Maka didn't want to end up on a cross, she would have to come up with a different method for getting the money. Maybe she could embezzle some of the money her owner gave her to buy bread with. She would explain the missing money by telling her owner that the bread got more expensive. But what if he asked Ms. Nakatsukasa? Maka would have to do a test to see how he reacted to missing money.

The next time Maka had to buy bread, she put two hundred dollars of the change into the wallet's coin compartment and fifty dollars into the bill compartment. She would see how he would react to the missing money.

"Here is the change, master", said Maka, barely able to hide her nervousness.

"Good", said her owner, "wait, there are only two hundred dollars here, where's the rest?". Maka did not know whether she should tell the truth or lie. Telling the truth was not an option, but Maka knew she was on very thin ice, thinner than she was comfortable with. She would have to thread carefully.

"I ehm, didn't pay much attention, master", said Maka, "I handed her the money and put the change into the wallet".

"So they raised the prices?", asked Dr. Evans, "I'll call and complain".

"I don't think they did, master", said Maka, "I think I would have noticed it".

"So you lost the money?", asked Dr. Evans, Maka was pretending to search through the wallet in a panic, "You'll be punished severely for this".

"I found it, master", said Maka, holding up the coin, "I must have accidentally put it where the bills normally go". Dr. Evans snatched the coin from her hand.

"You get a whipping for wasting my time", said Dr. Evans, "Go to your quarter, disrobe completely and fetch the whip".

"Yes, master, I'm sorry, master", said Maka with a gulp. As she took her dress off and fetched the whip, she concluded that her owner, despite being a rich man, paid lots of attention to his money.


	146. Winter clothes

The whipping was painful, like all whippings. Maka wished she hadn't tried to embezzle money. After she had regained her composure, she wondered what the severe punishment that her owner had threatened her with would have been. Would it be as bad as when he found out that she had tried to learn reading behind his back? Or worse? Maka would not want to know. She then remembered that one of the slaves she saw crucified at Golgotha had been crucified for stealing from his owner. So the punishment for embezzlement would be crucifixion. Maka did not want to risk crucifixion any more than necessary. Stealing or embezzling money from her owner was out of question. She would have to use other means to get money. But how? Louis K. said he always had work and that he paid good. No, that wouldn't work, while she could maybe use a rare day off to earn some money, she could not disappear for a month to murder someone. That was ridiculous. There wasn't really any way to raise money. Maka would just have to wait. All things come to the man or woman who waits.

Over the next few weeks, temperatures dropped steadily. After two weeks, snow started to fall. It was now about as cold as during the midsummer winter, but this was the real deal, it would get a lot more colder before it would get warmer again. What Maka soon learned was that winter in New Nevada was much worse than in West Wyoming. Plenty of snow began to fall, Maka had to shovel it several times a day, but at least the lawn did not need any care while it was buried under a foot of snow. Each time Maka had to leave the house, she put on a second dress first. When that didn't help, a third dress. But on most days, even that was not enough to effectively protect from the cold, so she put on a fourth dress. That didn't help, either, but Maka did not have more than four dresses. And her feet were still not protected at all. She only had her sandals. She tried taking old newspaper and wrapping them around her feet, then fixing them there with a piece of string. Maka would not try to run away during the winter, it would be suicide. After a week, her owner handed her a box.

"For you", said Dr. Evans. Maka opened the box.

"Thank you, master", said Maka. The box contained a thick gray cap that went over her ears, a scarf, a thick coat that went to her ankles, a pair of mittens and a pair of fur boots.

"Thank you, master", repeated Maka.

"No go and shovel snow", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She put on the winter clothes he had provided her. She could feel their thickness. These would keep her warm. She went outside to shovel snow, and indeed, the clothes kept her warm. She was glad that she finally wouldn't freeze out there in the cold. Did these clothes make it feasible to escape during winter without freezing to death? Maka concluded that she would still have to make herself a fire all the time. And it probably wouldn't do much during a snow storm. These clothes would just delay death in the frozen wastes. She would have to wait for summer or at least spring with her escape. She looked over and saw Jonathan shoveling snow, too. He was wearing some kind of fur hat with a red star on it. His coat also bore several insignia. The star on the hat had a hammer and a sickle in it. Maka wondered what the symbol meant. Dr. Evans came outside. He hadn't bothered putting on anything thicker than what he was already wearing.

"Where did Louis K. get a Soviet officer's uniform?", asked Dr. Evans.

"He brought it along from Europe, noticed it fitted me and let me use it, sir", said Jonathan.

"Does he know this is probably several hundred years old?", said Dr. Evans.

"I can ask him, sir", said Jonathan. Then Jonathan went back to work and Dr. Evans went back inside. Maka wondered why her owner had memorized what an ancient military uniform looked like. But she didn't really care about it, after all, he could just be a history enthusiast. Maybe the Soviet was a country during the golden age, of which Dr. Evans was talking so much. But how could it have been a golden age if West Wyoming's president wasn't around by then. Maybe he was. But if he was, wouldn't the golden age still be going on? Maka was confused about this golden age stuff. Later that day, Jonathan knocked at the door.

"Hello, Maka, could I speak your master, please?", asked Jonathan. Maka told him Jonathan was there and Dr. Evans came to the door.

"I have an answer to your question, sir", said Jonathan.

"And what is it?", asked Dr. Evans.

"This uniform was worn by Russian partisans during world war five, sir", explained Jonathan, "Master says he had trouble finding one that didn't have any bullet holes in it".

"I know, these guys basically lost before the fight even started", said Dr. Evans, "The first citizen of Europe is a brilliant strategist and tactician".

"Anyway, goodbye, sir, I hope that answers your question", said Jonathan, before he left. Maka wondered who this first citizen of Europe was. It sounded like he was the second greatest politician who ever lived, after the president of West Wyoming, of course. Maka wondered how long winter lasted in New Nevada. Was it winter in all of New Nevada or only in the north. Dr. Evans' parents lived in another weather zone, so it could be any kind of weather there. Maybe it was even warm there. If it was indeed warm there, she could run there, hide until summer and then move on to West Wyoming. But Maka didn't think that was realistic, either.


	147. A fire in the New Confeds

A few days later, Maka was fetching the mail, like every morning. She had made it a habit to look at the front page of the newspaper, in case something interesting had happened in the world, which could influence her escape plans. The headline, "Mayor of New Vegas murdered by clowder of cats", was not what caught her attention, even though it certainly was strange. Her attention was caught by the article to the left of it, "New Confederate customs officer died in house fire". A blow was struck to the New Confederates, the war couldn't last much longer! At this moment Maka heard her owner coming, so she put the newspaper on the table along with the other mail and served the tea. Her owner came downstairs and began to read his mail while he was eating his breakfast. He opened the first letter and read it, then the second.

"My brother is coming for the winter solstice", said Dr. Evans.

"Should I prepare a room for Dr. Wes Evans, master?", asked Maka.

"Not Wes, Alfred, my younger brother", said Dr. Evans.

"Should I prepare a room for Alfred Evans, master?", asked Maka.

"It's Dr. Alfred Evans", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", apologized Maka, "should I prepare a room for Dr. Alfred Evans, master?".

"Yes, obviously", said Dr. Evans.

"Should I start now, master?", asked Maka.

"The winter solstice is in roughly a month", said Dr. Evans, "What kind of holidays did you celebrate in West Wyoming?".

"The presidents birthday, the day West Wyoming was founded, the birthday of his wife, beer day, Victory over Green River day, Martin's birthday, White Cloak day", listed Maka.

"This Ligua guy is living a pretty nice life, he has basically declared himself a god", said Dr. Evans, "I hope he wins the war, I don't want to buy Louis K. a magazine subscription".

"How much does a magazine subscription cost?", asked Maka.

"Not much, but Louis K. always rubs it in when he wins a bet", said Dr. Evans. Maka wondered what her owner meant with 'has basically declared himself a god', was that positive or negative? Maka wanted to know it, but she was to afraid to ask.

"I will get back to work now, master", said Maka.

"Do that", said Dr. Evans. Maka waited until her owner had left the room and grabbed the newspaper, so she could read the article. Apparently, a medium high ranking officer in the customs of the New Confederates had been killed in a house fire. There was no explanation as to what caused the fire. When the fire department arrived, the house has already completely ablaze. Maka wondered what a fire department was, her guess was that they put out fires. The article explained that the customs officer and his family lived in a large three story house with a family of slaves. The article then went on to explain that of the thirteen people living in the house, two are already confirmed to be dead, the rest are still missing, but presumed dead. When asked about the cause of the fire, the commander of the fire department said that it was probably faulty wiring or something like that, even though arson cannot be ruled out. The customs officer was famous for his campaign against corruption at border checkpoints, and had also declared that he would put an end to drug and arms smuggling. An independent analyst said that this would make it significantly easier to smuggle weapons into the New Confederates.

Maka didn't know if that was good or bad. If they had less weapons, they could not do as much in the war against West Wyoming, and while West Wyoming's victory was already certain, it would still be best if the war was over as quickly as possible. And once West Wyoming had won the war, they would have to deal with insurgents, which would fill the reformative labor camps, they would probably open up a few more. But if it was easy to get weapons into the New Confederates, these insurgents could arm themselves already before they had to fight, which would make dealing with them considerably less easy. Maka just hoped that the war would end soon. And it would. It was winter now, the new Confederates would freeze to death in this cold. But she forgot that they had to deal with a Wyoming winter, which was considerably easier to deal with. But it would still help West Wyoming, because the New Confederates' equipment was terrible. Maka would have to hurry if she wanted to escape before the war ended. But she knew that that, due to the weather, would be suicide. She would be of no use to her homeland dead. She should focus on getting back home alive.

After Maka had finished reading the article, she went back to her day's work. A few days later, Ninon arrived back at her father's house. She arrived during the afternoon. The first thing Louis K. and his daughter did was to build a snowman in their front yard. Maka wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation, so she put on her winter clothes and left the house. She posistioned herself in the door, so that she could listen to them talk without being heard herself.

"About that job you gave me", said Ninon, "I've done it".

"I know, my angel", said Louis K., "You did such good work, it got into the newspaper".

"About what you promised me?", asked Ninon.

"Certainly, my angel", said Louis K., handing her a suitcase, "In fact, you did such good work, you've earned yourself a bonus". Ninon opened the suitcase and checked its content.

"A bonus?", asked Ninon happily, "what is it?".

"Close your eyes", said Louis K. Ninon closed her eyes. Louis K. went back inside and came back out with a large bottle connected over a hose to a pipe. There was a trigger on the pipe.

"You can open your eyes", said Louis K.

"Is this...", stammered Ninon in disbelieve, she pointed the pipe towards the street and pressed it's trigger. A stream of fire shot out.

"A flamethrower!", said Ninon, throwing herself around her father, "Thank you, Daddy!". The flamethrower fell to the ground and it stopped spewing its flame.


	148. Live giving fire

"Now, you have to promise me not to set anything of value of fire", said Louis K., "Not any of these houses, not Jonathan, and not Maka".

"I promise", said Ninon.

"Good", said Louis K. the two then resumed building their snowman. After they had the balls in place, put rocks into his head to make his face, finishing with a carrot as a nose. Maka went back inside, before she got noticed. She didn't want to know what Louis K. would do to her if he knew that she knew what Ninon did. After all, killing Maka would be property destruction, and Louis K. looked like he could easily pay money to replace Maka. Once she was inside, she went back to her work. She looked outside at the snowman. She wondered if he would mind missing his nose. No, he wouldn't, he was a snowman. Maka walked quickly and went outside and grabbed the snowman's nose. Then she went back inside so that nobody could see her. Once she was inside, she wondered if somebody knew that she had taken the nose. She figured that the answer was probably no, so she ate the nose. After Maka had finished the nose, she went back to work once again.

A bit later, Maka heard a scratching at the door. She was curious as to what could be causing the scratching. She opened the door and Blair entered, mostly covered in snow and still wearing her witch hat. Once inside, Blair shook herself, catapulting some of the snow around the room, but keeping her witch hat on her head. Maka saw that she would have to clean the anteroom once again. She got to work, silently cursing Blair under her breath. Blair went into the living room and curled up on one of the chairs. A short while later, Maka heard a meowing coming from the living room. She came into the living room and saw Blair meowing in front of the fireplace. Did Blair want a fire to be lit in the fireplace? How did Blair even know what a fire place is? Maka decided not to light the fireplace, since she would probably get in trouble if she did so. Maka turned around and went back to work. Blair went upstairs. A short while later, she went back downstairs again, followed by Dr. Evans, who was asking her what she wanted. Blair stopped in front of the fireplace.

"Maka, light the fireplace", ordered Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She lit the fireplace. Who did that Blair think she was? Maka had the impression that all cats acted as if humans were just their slaves. Of course, if that was true, nothing would really change for Maka, she chuckled at that thought as she lit a fire. Blair curled up in front of the fireplace and went to sleep. Dr. Evans began petting Blair, gently running his hand down her back. Maka hated this stupid cat. She wanted to get away from Blair. Looking out of the window, she noticed that she would have to shovel snow.

"May I go to shovel snow now, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes, do that", said Dr. Evans, absentmindedly petting the purring Blair. Maka went outside and began to shovel snow. A while later, Jonathan began shoveling snow, too. After a while, Ninon left the house.

"You guys look cold", observed Ninon, "I'll warm you up". Then Ninon went back inside. Jonathan dropped his shovel and ran around his owner's house into the garden. Maka wondered if she should do the same. Then Ninon came back out with a load of firewood under her arm. Maka decided to act as if she wasn't dealing with a dangerous pyromaniac.

"Could I borrow your shovel?", asked Ninon.

"Sure, madam", said Maka. Ninon moved the snow away from small area, handed Maka the shovel back and put the wood where the snow used to be. Then she lit a fire.

"Where's Jonathan?", asked Ninon.

"You scared him and he ran into the garden", said Maka, "he thinks you wanted to set him on fire again, madam".

"Louis was extremely mad after I had done that for the first time", said Ninon.

"He gave you your lighter back after about a single day, madam", said Maka, she didn't like the course the conversation was taking. She had a very bad felling about this. But nonetheless, she stepped up to the fire and began warming herself.

"Isn't fire simply beautiful?", said Ninon, "such purity, such elegance, such energy, such force".

"It certainly has some aspects, madam", said Maka.

"A simple flame is pure, a source of live giving heat", said Ninon, "we owe our entire technology to fire. In fact, we owe our very lives to fire".

"I once saw a young woman accused of witchcraft burned at the stake, madam", said Maka.

"Don't you see, fire gives warmth and comfort", said Ninon, "and in fact, the sun is a fire, a big fire in the sky. And once it runs out, we're all going to die".

"I guess you're right, madam", said Maka.

"Actually, the sun is a giant nuclear fusion, and it will run out in about four point five billion years", said Louis K., "have you seen Jonathan, he's supposed to be shoveling snow?".

"He ran into the backyard, sir", said Maka, "I guess he's scared of Ninon, sir". Louis K. went into the backyard. A while later, he came back, dragging Jonathan along, gently reassuring him that Ninon would not set him on fire again. Maka noticed that Jonathan was visibly shaking, and she didn't think it was from the cold.

"Please don't look at me like that, young mistress", said Jonathan.

"Don't worry, I won't set you on fire again", said Ninon, "but you must admit that it was pretty funny".

"Have you ever been on fire yourself, young mistress", yelled Jonathan, "How about you try that out yourself first, young mistress". Maka was shocked, if she would take that tone with any of her owner's family members, she would be in a world of hurt.

"I did", said Ninon, rolling up her sleeve, revealing a large scar. It indeed looked like it was from a burn, a really nasty burn.

"You're to fire what the late Dr. Stein was to surgery", said Louis K., "And Jonathan, I will overlook your outburst for now, but if you take that tone again, I'll gag you".


	149. The baker's guild

"I'm sorry, master. Yes, master", said Jonathan.

"What happened to that Dr. Stein?", asked Ninon.

"Dr. Evans shot him in a duel", said Louis K.

"How comes you don't have a doctorate?", asked Ninon.

"Because while these guys were pampered by an army of slaves", shouted Louis K., "I was working in a factory for three Euros a day to support my brother after my parents had been killed by the first citizen's thugs!".

"I hope you earned enough money", said Ninon.

"If we do a little math, we see that the cost of keeping a slave, according to the ministry of wealth, all numbers converted in Euros", explained Louis K., now completely calm, "is five Euros a day".

"That's means you were in the same situation Jonathan was in, sir", said Maka.

"What do you mean?", asked Louis K.

"I used to work a badly paid job before I got enslaved, master", said Jonathan.

"Get back to work", ordered Louis K.

"Yes, master", said Jonathan.

"I think I should get back to work, too, sir", said Maka.

"Do that", said Louis K. and went inside. Ninon followed him. Maka went to shovel snow, she had wasted quite a bit of time talking with Ninon, Louis K, and Jonathan, she would have to hurry up if she didn't want to anger her owner. After Maka finished, she went inside, hoping that Dr. Evans had not noticed that she had dawdled. Luckily, he was still occupied with Blair. He was waving a piece of string in her face and she grabbed at it with her paws. They both seemed to be entertained. Maka quietly went to her other duties, so that her owner would not notice her. He didn't, and the day passed rather well for Maka.

The days became shorter and shorter. As far as Maka knew, winter solstice was the shortest day in the year. It could not be long until that actually arrived. But her owner had said it wouldn't happen in a month. Each day, Maka hoped the days would stop getting shorter, but as she already knew, it would happen in roughly a month. The month passed slowly. Each day, it became colder. And someone said this whole country was once a desert. Maka seriously wondered what had happened to it. She wished it was still a desert, then she would not have to put on all these warm yet heavy clothes every day. She was thankful towards her owner that he had given them to her. Snow shoveling would not have been survivable without them. Maka only wished she had gotten them a week sooner.

"Maka, prepare a room for my brother", ordered Dr. Evans during breakfast one day.

"Yes, master", said Maka. As she went upstairs, she remembered that she had never prepared a guest room before. She didn't have to do it when her owner's father came to visit. She only had to do it now after she asked if she should. She felt like she had just invented a new duty for herself. She decided to ask her owner.

"Master, what does prepare a guest room mean?", asked Maka.

"I dunno, clean it up, change the bedding I suppose ", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka and she did what he had told her to do. During lunch, her owner ordered her to prepare a three course dinner for the evening. He gave her some money to buy ingredients. Maka had noticed that in the wintertime, all the salesmen on the market had marked up their prices considerably. Maka could understand them. During the winter, all that stuff was harder to get by, so the salesmen had to charge more in order to turn a profit. Maka didn't really notice these price hikes, each time she was sent grocery shopping during the winter, her owner just gave her more money than he would have given her during the summer. But these high prices would hurt the poor. She could frequently see them huddled around a burning trash can, wrapped in several layers of rags, warming themselves. The only commodity whose price didn't go up was bread. Maka wondered why. After she had done her shopping, she stopped at Ms. Nakatsukasa's bakery, who was just about to close her business for the day.

"Excuse me madam", said Maka.

"Yes?", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"I noticed that everything gets more expensive during the winter", said Maka, "except bread, how do you manage to keep the prices low?".

"Not I", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "the guild. They have a rule to prevent seasonal fluctuation. We charge more for the bread during the summer than we are actually allowed to according the guild's rules, so that we can afford to make less profit during the winter".

"So you break the guild rules?", asked Maka.

"No, silly, the guild has a rule that states that bread has to be sold at one hundred twenty five percent of the production cost", explained Ms. Nakatsukasa, "But another rule states that we are allowed to sell it for more than that during summer, so that we can sell it for less than that during the winter and still turn a healthy profit".

"That's a very good rule, madam", said Maka, "the guild must have a wise leader".

"The guild is basically a direct democracy", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "all full members can vote".

"What does vote mean, madam?", asked Maka.

"It means to participate in a election", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"What is an election, madam?", asked Maka.

"It's a process were the people decide for a leader, or whether a policy should be adopted or not", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. Maka thought that sounded stupid, why vote when you have a president like Charles Anderson Ligua. But then Maka remembered that these poor people didn't have such a president.

"And how do you become a full member of the guild, madam?", asked Maka.

"You need to be certified as a trades person", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "that's all".

"So you became one after you were freed?", asked Maka.

"No, I was already a full member when I was still a slave", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"So, if somebody has a lot of slaves who are certified bakers, he could manipulate the guild, madam?", asked Maka.

"No, the vote is anonymous", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"What does that mean, madam?", asked Maka.

"It means that this theoretical master you mentioned would have no way of knowing what his slaves voted for", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "he would have to take their word for it".


	150. Dr Alfred Evans

"Seems like the guild is very well organized, madam", said Maka.

"Bye", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Goodbye, madam", said Maka. When Maka arrived at her owner's house, she started preparing dinner.

"Alfred, it's nice to see you", said Dr. Evans.

"Nice to see you, too", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "what's smelling so good?".

"My slave is preparing dinner", said Dr. Evans.

"It better measure up to the smell", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"She knows she'll get a whipping if it doesn't", said Dr. Evans.

"When will dinner be ready?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans.

"I guess when it's always ready", said Dr. Evans, "at six o'clock".

"In two hours?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans.

"Yes, in two hours", said Dr. Evans.

"What should we do in that time?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans.

"How about we play chess?", asked Dr. Evans.

"You always win", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "so no". They continued to discuss what they should play for several hours, until they eventually settled on backgammon. Maka had heard of backgammon, even though she had never played it. After about one hour they were done. Dr. Alfred Evans had won, and Dr. Evans complained about his bad luck. Maka hoped he wouldn't take it out on her. She would have to be on her very best behavior. The two men agreed on a rematch. Dr. Alfred won again, and Dr. Evans sounded even angrier than before. Maka finished preparing the appetizer and put it on the table, then she went to call her owner and his brother to dinner. Dr. Alfred Evans was, like his two brothers, an albino. He had brought a blond female slave along. Maka noted her appearance, he had clearly bought her because she was attractive.

"Wow, I've seen men with bigger breast than these", said Dr. Alfred Evans, grabbing Maka's right breast. Maka should have seen this coming, but now she couldn't step away without getting into trouble.

"Did they have no slaves with decent breasts that day?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans giving Maka's breast a squeeze before moving on to left breast, "Was she the best endowed one on the slave market?"

"Well, no", said Dr. Evans.

"I wonder why you bought her then", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"I liked something about her, but I cannot quite say what", said Dr. Evans.

"Definitively weren't her breasts", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"But somehow, everybody wants to touch them. Josef K., father, you", said Dr. Evans.

"You can help yourself to a feel of her breasts, if you want", said Dr. Alfred Evans, pointing at his slave. Dr. Evans grabbed the slave's left breast and began to softly knead it.

"Nice", said Dr. Evans, turning to the slave, he asked, "What's your name?". The slave remained silent, had a expression of fear on her face and began gesticulating wildly.

"I asked you what your name is!", shouted Dr. Evans angrily, slapping the slave with the back of his hand, the same way he slapped Maka on occasion. He left a dark red hand print on her cheek. Maka knew that this must have been very painful, since it had happened to her last week. Dr. Alfred Evans' slave continued to gesticulate desperately, while her owner just laughed. Dr. Evans slapped her on the other cheek.

"She's mute, bro", said Dr. Alfred Evans, barely able to contain his laughter.

"Oh, how did that happen?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Her tongue's been cut out", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"I always thought you could still scream without your tongue", said Dr. Evans. His brother slapped Maka with the back of his hand. Maka's left hand immediately began to rub the painful hand print on her cheek. Why did he slap her.

"Your slave doesn't scream in pain when she's slapped either", said Dr. Alfred Evans, letting go of Maka's breast.

"Why's her tongue been cut out?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I always wanted a mute slave", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"So you mutilated her just because you wanted her to be mute?", asked Dr. Evans, "that's not very nice".

"Nah, she got her tongue cut out earlier, before I bought her", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "I think her tongue was cut out for talking to much".

"If Maka talked to much, I'd just gag her for a few days", said Dr. Evans.

"Well, whoever owned her first had different ideas", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "But I can't really think of any other reason to cut her tongue out".

"Excuse me, master, but the dinner is getting cold", said Maka.

"Thank you, Maka", said Dr. Evans, turning to his brother, he added, "let's eat". The two men ate their meal, while Maka continued to prepare the main course in the kitchen. Dr. Alfred Evans' slave was watching her. Maka still didn't know what her name was. She was mute, so Maka couldn't just ask her, but Maka decided to give it a try anyways.

"What's your name?", asked Maka. The slave had a look of fear on her face and walked a few steps backwards. She was obviously scared.

"I won't hurt you", said Maka. The slaves face relaxed a bit, even though she didn't get any closer to Maka. Maka didn't know what she should do now to find out this slave's name. Maybe she should try asking her owner. She waited until she had to serve the main course.

"Excuse me, master's brother, may I ask you a question?", asked Maka.

"Go ahead", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"What is your slave's name, master's brother?", asked Maka.

"I want to know that, too", said Dr. Evans.

"It's Lisa", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"Thank you, master's brother", said Maka. She took the dishes from the appetizer and went into the kitchen to wash them.


	151. Lisa

"Lisa, why has your tongue been cut out?", asked Maka, while scrubbing the dishes. Lisa began to gesticulate. She held one hand to her ear, opened and closed the other one regularly. Then she grabbed at her mouth, pulled the hand away, and showed a cutting motion with her other hand. Maka didn't really know how she should interpret that.

"Can you write?", asked Maka. Lisa shook her head. So Lisa had no real means of communication apart from her gestures. Maybe it would be possible to teach Lisa how to read. But that would take time. In fact, it would take to much time. Maka would have to find a different way to get Lisa to talk. Louise was an expert when it came to getting people to talk. She could probably help out. But Lisa didn't refuse to talk, she was unable to talk. So any sort of painful persuasion would not really achieve anything. But maybe Louise had to deal with mute people once in a while.

"Have you ever thought about running away?", whispered Maka. Lisa looked around, then she nodded.

"Have you got any ideas?", whispered Maka. Lisa put her hand on the kitchen surface, she made it stand on her index and ring finger. Then she let her hand run across the kitchen surface. Then Lisa finished with her gestures.

"What's that supposed to mean?", asked Maka, "run like hell?". Lisa nodded. It occurred to Maka that she didn't know what hell was. She would have to ask somebody. Then it occurred to her that Lisa's plan was the equivalent of not having a plan. Maka hoped that Lisa would not actually try to pull off her plan, it was doomed to fail. Maka didn't think a mute would be good help during her escape. Then Maka went to serve the dessert. She wondered if she could ask her owner what hell was, but she decided that that would be pushing her luck. Her owner and his brother were talking about how Samantha got crucified. Maka went to clean the dishes. After she was done, she went to see whether her owner or his brother needed anything. They had started talking about politics now. When they noticed her, they turned on her.

"Maka, how did you determine where to put Samantha's cross?", asked Dr. Evans. Maka didn't know whether she should be honest or not. Then she thought it would be best if she wouldn't be honest.

"I put it somewhere where I liked the view, master", said Maka, realizing to late that she just told them the whole truth.

"That's nice", said Dr. Evans, "So she at least died while looking at something nice".

"I wonder if she could appreciate the nice view over the excruciating pain", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"Who knows", said Dr. Evans, "Maka, if I ever find reason to crucify you, I'll give you a nice view, too". Maka was not quite sure how she should respond.

"Thank you, master", said Maka, "I'll probably appreciate that". Dr. Evans and his brother laughed. Maka didn't find it very funny, she would have to risk crucifixion sometime if she wanted to be free. She slowly went back into the kitchen. She was greeted by Lisa, who was standing tall with her arms stretched out. Maka wondered what Lisa wanted.

"What do you want?", asked Maka. Lisa put her arms a bit higher and got up onto her tiptoes, keeping her hands where they were. Then she went back down onto her feet. She got on her tiptoes again but acted as if she was struggling, only getting about halfway before getting down again and letting her head hang down.

"You want to know about the slave who got crucified?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded. Maka began to tell Lisa about how Samantha got crucified, and how it came that she had to oversee the execution. Maka stressed how she was not proud of what she did that day, but that she had no choice. Lisa listened with interest, but also with fright, like to a horror story. Maka just hoped she wouldn't be the next to star in such a horror story. She mustn't mess up her escape. Maka wondered how long she would survive on the cross. Shorter than Samantha, or longer? Maka hoped she wouldn't find that out. Then a piano started playing. It was a slow and sad melody. But still, Maka enjoyed it. Lisa seemed to enjoy it, too. Maka walked into the living room to better listen to the melody, but once there, she was told to fetch a bottle of wine. Her owner and his brother drank for a while, then Maka was allowed to go to bed. Lisa was told to unpack her owner's stuff and then wait in the corresponding guest room for him. Maka went to sleep. A short while later, she was woken up again. Lisa was getting into her bed. Maka thought that if she pushed Lisa out, Lisa couldn't complain to her owner or to her owner, since she was mute. But what if she was successful with her gesticulating? Maka didn't want to take that risk, so she let Lisa stay in her bed.


	152. Lisa wants to sneak out

The next morning, Dr. Evans and his brother about the winter solstice celebration today and how fun it would be. Apparently, the celebration consisted of lighting a bonfire. Then they would sing songs and dance while the bonfire burned down. After the bonfire was burned down, free mulled wine and waffles would be served to everybody in attendance. And the celebration was open to everyone. It was paid for by donations. The rich, such as Dr. Evans or Dr. Blackstar were expected to make large donations. And they did, in order to preserve their good name. Dr. Evans mentioned that he donated five hundred million dollars to charity over the last year. His brother topped it, saying he had donated six hundred million dollars. Dr. Evans said that he could have done so, too, but didn't want to make his brother look bad. Dr. Alfred Evans laughed in his face. Then Dr. Evans turned to Maka.

"Before you ask, you don't get the day off", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka, she hadn't expected to get any time off anyway. In fact, she had already gotten much more time off than she expected when she was captured.

"The same goes for you, Lisa", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa nodded and made a bow. After breakfast, the two men left the house. Lisa approached Maka. She took out a box of matches and put it on the table. She then pointed in direction of the door and then at the matches.

"There's a fire?", asked Maka in shock. Lisa shook her head. Then she pointed at the matches again.

"Matches?", asked Maka. Lisa shook her head and lit one of the matches.

"Fire?", guessed Maka. Lisa nodded and shook the match, extinguishing it. Then Lisa put the matchbox on the floor and danced around it.

"Dancing?", guessed Maka, "around a fire?". Lisa nodded again.

"Ninon?", asked Maka. Lisa shook her head.

"The winter solstice celebration?", guessed Maka. Lisa nodded. Then she pointed at the door and made slow steps, walking on her tiptoes.

"Sneaking?", guessed Maka, "you want to sneak out to attend the winter solstice celebration? Without me, I don't want trouble". Lisa grabbed Maka's dress and pulled on it. Then she smiled. Maka wondered what Lisa wanted to suggest. Probably that the celebration would be fun. But her owner would attend the celebration, too. Maka could not risk running into him. She wondered what the punishment for sneaking out was. Was it crucifixion? But on the other hand, she was sneaking out to have some fun and come back later, not to run away. If her owner believed her that she just sneaked out to have some fun, he would maybe not crucify her. But Maka didn't want to risk it. Lisa went upstairs. She came back with the family photo Dr. Evans kept in his room. She pointed at the young Dr. Evans and his brother, then she shrugged with her shoulders.

"Our master's are dumb?", asked Maka. Lisa shook her head. Then she pointed at the door again, sneaked a short distance, pointed at their respective owner's on the photo and made a shrug.

"They won't know we sneaked out?", asked Maka, "I'm not sure. What if they run into us?" Lisa took a nondescript gray scarf, it looked similar to Maka's, but it wasn't Maka's, Dr. Alfred Evans must have taken some winter clothes for Lisa along, and wrapped it around her neck and face. Then she put on her winter cap. She had almost completely concealed her face, only her eyes remaining visible.

"I see, we go in disguise", said Maka, "I must admit, they probably wouldn't recognize us". Maybe Lisa had given this more thought than Maka initially though she did. Maybe she knew what she was doing.

"Did you do this before?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded. Maka thought that she could probably sneak out without being caught. She would just have to be careful not to get close to her owner and she would be fine. But her owner would question her about what she did while he was away. She would have to do some work first, so that she wouldn't get in trouble when he asked her.

"I still don't know whether we should pull through with the plan", said Maka, "Even if they don't catch us at the celebration, we will still be caught when they come home and see that we didn't do any work". Lisa held her arms as if she was holding a mop and moved her imaginary mop in a scrubbing motion over the floor.

"Do some work first, so that it won't look like we were lazy back here?", guessed Maka, Lisa nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. I'm still skeptical, if they catch us, we'll end up on the field of repentance". Lisa looked puzzled.

"I mean we'll get crucified", said Maka. Lisa shook her head.

"No? do you know what the penalty is for sneaking out?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded, then she walked away, Maka followed her. She led her into the her quarter, where Lisa pointed at the whipping post.

"We'll get a whipping?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded. Then she shook her head and pointed at the picture of their owner's, before she shrugged her shoulder's again.

"But they won't catch us, so we won't?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded. Maka had to admit, Lisa seemed to have thought of everything. She was now confident that she wouldn't get caught. So why not attend the celebration?

"Okay, let's quickly get some work done, so that we can go", said Maka. They both went to work. They worked hard and fast, trying to clean as many rooms as possible in as little time as possible. The rooms were not very nice after they were done with them, but they hoped they were clean enough to stand up to a rudimentary inspection. Maka just shouldn't make this a habit. After they had worked for two hours, Maka found that they had probably done enough to appease their owners. But then she started getting second thought's about this. She really didn't want a whipping. And the only surefire way to avoid one would be to obey the rules. But Maka really wanted to attend the celebration, and Lisa's plan seemed foolproof.


	153. The winter solstice celebration

"I think we can go now", said Maka. She and Lisa went and put on their caps, before they wrapped their face in their scarves, then they put on all the rest. Maka double checked herself in the mirror. The collar was covered by the scarf, as was most of her face, all her hair was stuffed under the cap, so that her owner would not be able to see her hair, out of fear that he might recognize her by it. The bulky coat completed the disguise. Maka was confident that no one could recognize her with all that stuff on. Lisa's disguise was similarly complete. They both walked to the town square, where the winter solstice celebration was being held.

When they arrived, the bonfire was just about to be lit. Maka assumed that the two hours up until now were used for a speech, like in West Wyoming. A young girl stepped up to the bonfire, holding a torch almost as large as her torso, and lit the fire. The flame quickly spread across the bonfire, making it a true bonfire. Maka knew she had to be careful. She tried to locate her owner in the crowd, staying away from him would be a wise precaution. The crowd started to sing. Maka expected the first song to be this countries national anthem. But it wasn't, which Maka couldn't really understand, in her homeland, the first song to be sung during a celebration was always the national anthem. Why would they do it differently here? Maka continued to scan the crowd for her owner. Then she saw him standing with his brother on the opposite site of the square, in the front row of the crowd, singing the song. Maka picked herself a nice spot in the crowd, next to several people dressed in similar clothing. Maka though she shouldn't sing along, in case her owner was somehow able to hear her voice out of all the other voices. Lisa, who was next to her, didn't have to ask herself about whether she should sing or not.

The first song that was being sung was about the winter, and how spring would come soon. The second song was about how winter sucked, because it was so cold. The third song was about how spring would come, followed by a song about the seasons. Maka wondered if they had any songs that weren't about the weather. But it was the winter solstice celebration. But while the songs all dealt with the same topic, they were all very nice songs. Some had a sad melody, some a happy one, some were slow, some were fast. Maka especially liked a song titled "The king of winter", it was about a cruel king who personified winter. The song happily described how the king forced one of his servants to work naked in the snow, where said servant froze to death. Then the song described how the king became sick and got weaker and weaker until he eventually died, after which the people celebrated the fact that they were free of the king's tyranny. In the last verse of the song, the king was reborn and made preparations to seize power again. Maka wondered how long it would take her to freeze to death if she was forced to shovel snow in the nude. Maka checked where her owner was, only to find that he was still standing where he stood earlier.

After the singing stopped and the fire was still burning bright, a man in a suit, Maka assumed he was the mayor of New Death City, announced that it would be time to dance now. Maka pitied him, he must be freezing. But there's a price for looking stylish. The crowd started to dance, it was a mostly random dance. Some twirled around, some ran and jumped. The crowd was also spreading out now, so that everybody would have enough place for dancing. Maka was worried that she now was easier to spot. She looked where her owner was. He was moving in her direction. Maka started dancing, too, to keep the distance between herself and her owner. She moved a bit faster than her owner until she was on opposite sites of the circle from him, where she held his speed. Maka had to admit that this was indeed great fun. Even better, later they would have free waffles and mulled wine. Maka was very glad she had chosen to come here. Lisa was right, they wouldn't get caught.

Then Maka noticed a person dancing in the other way. Maka barely managed to step aside to avoid a collision. What if her owner danced counterclockwise, too? Maka looked around to see where he was. But she could not locate him. Maybe he was behind the fire? Then she located him. He was dancing with a girl, they were holding each other by the hand and spinning around. The fire was starting to weaken. Soon, there would be mulled wine. But Maka still had to be careful to avoid he owner. Maka grabbed the arm of a man and they spun around, like she saw her owner do earlier. It was fun, but he and Maka separated again. A while later, the fire was burned down completely.

The mayor, who had put on a cap, announced that the mulled wine and waffles would now be available. Lisa pulled at Maka's coat. They decided that they would go for mulled wine first, then for waffles. The mulled wine was being served at a large table, and despite the many people who arrived asking for some, the slaves who manned the tables were easily able to keep up. Maka had to admit that this celebration was very well organized. After a short time of waiting, Maka got herself a cup of mulled wine. Maka took a sip. It was an elegant mixture of sweet and bitter, and very hot. Maka loved the taste. It occurred to her that Lisa, lacking a tongue, would be unable to properly enjoy it. Then Maka grabbed a waffle. It was covered in powdered sugar, a luxury. The rich must be very generous, Maka just wished that more of Dr. Evans' generosity was directed at her. She slowly ate the waffle and drank the mulled wine, she wanted to properly enjoy it. Who knew when she got mulled wine again. After she had finished, she went for seconds. A hand grabbed at her face and pulled her scarf down.

"Hello, Maka", said Dr. Evans.


	154. Logical consequence

"It was Lisa's idea!", yelled Maka, "she talked me into it!"

"She 'talked' you into it", said Dr. Evans, "she's mute. First you leave the house without permission, probably neglecting your duties, then you try to shift the blame to someone else, who is not even here".

"But...", stammered Maka.

"Silence!", yelled Dr. Evans, "you're in a lot of trouble".

"Please don't crucify me, master", begged Maka.

"I'm not going to crucify you, but I'm not letting you off easy, either", said Dr. Evans, grabbing Maka's hair, "Now shut up". He started looking for his brother in the crowd, dragging Maka along by her hair. He held it in such a way that he pulled it all the time, but of course, the pressure increased each time Maka didn't manage to keep up with him. It hurt, she hoped he would let go of her hair soon, but he was still searching for his brother. She would fight back, but if she did that, he would certainly crucify her.

"Hey brother", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "What you've got there?"

"Maka, she claims that your slave sneaked out, too", said Dr. Evans.

"Let's go home, and see", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Dr. Evans nodded in agreement, before yanked Maka's hair, causing a scream to escape her lips. On the entire way to his house, Dr. Evans yanked Maka's hair regularly. Maka already regretted sneaking out. They came across Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"Good afternoon, Dr. Evans", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"You can call me Soul", said Dr. Evans, "Since we know each other for such a long time".

"Looks like Maka did something bad", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"She left the house without my permission", said Dr. Evans, "I have to think of a punishment for her. My father would just send her to the standing cell for two weeks, but I don't have any".

"I feared the standing cells when I was a slave", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "even though I was never placed in one".

"As far as I know, they're very claustrophobic", said Dr. Evans, yanking Maka's hair, causing her to scream in pain "and uncomfortable. Maka here can probably attest to that".

"Yes, master", said Maka.

"Could you go easy on her?", asked Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"No, why should I", said Dr. Evans, "There's no excuse for what she has done".

"I guess you're right", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "I have to go check on Meme".

"Worried she wrecked something again?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I gave her a long list of stuff to do and promised her a whipping if it isn't done by the time I come back", said Ms. Nakatsukasa.

"You think you'll give her the whipping?", asked Dr. Evans.

"I think not, but with her, you never know", said Ms. Nakatsukasa, "she does very good work if you're breathing down her neck, but if you stop supervising her, she 'forgets'".

"Good luck, bye", said Dr. Evans, giving Maka's hair a yank and continuing on his way.

"Thanks, bye", said Ms. Nakatsukasa. When they arrived at Dr. Evans' house, Lisa was shoveling snow.

"Good work Lisa", said Dr. Alfred Evans, "It was a wise decision not to sneak out". Lisa bowed.

"Maka tried to blame you for what she did", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa didn't react, she just looked at her owner, then at Maka.

"She said you talked her into it", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa shook her head, opened her mouth and pointed at her missing tongue.

"It's true!", protested Maka. Dr. Evans yanked her head upwards and slapped her with the back of his other hand. Maka came to the conclusion that being slapped hurt much more than having her hair pulled. Dr. Evans dragged Maka inside. Dr. Alfred Evans followed, he told Lisa, who had just finished shoveling the snow from the path, to come inside, too. Once they were all inside, Dr. Alfred Evans ordered Lisa to light the fireplace. Dr. Evans sent Maka to fetch two rags.

"Lisa, as a reward, you can have Maka's bed as long as your master is staying here", said Dr. Evans, while Maka searched for two clean rags, "Maka will sleep on the floor".

"Here are the two rags, master", said Maka, handing her owner the rags.

"Now go to your quarter, disrobe completely and fetch the whip", said Dr. Evans.

"Yes, master", said Maka. She knew what was coming. She went into her quarter and disrobed completely. Then she went to fetch the whip. She could feel three pairs of eyes on her as she dug naked trough the commode for the whip. After she had found it, she quickly retreated into her quarter to wait for the inevitable. And indeed, a short while later, her owner came. He then ordered Lisa to secure Maka to the whipping post. Once Maka was secured, Dr. Evans ordered Lisa to blindfold Maka. Then all the three of them left. Maka knew she would get whipped, she should probably be glad that it wasn't anything more severe, like having her fingernails ripped out. But how long would she have to wait for her whipping? She expected the first lash to come any moment. And each moment, she felt relief that it didn't came, but also disappointment, because it would sometime. Her feet were starting to hurt from standing on her tiptoes, and the restraints were starting to cut into her flesh.

Then she finally felt the first lash on her back. Seven fires of intense pain. Followed by seven more. Maka began to scream in pain. Then the third lash landed, right across the other two, tremendously increasing the pain. With the next two lashes, Maka lost count of the lashes. Lashes landed one after another. Her screams merged into a continuous crying, which lost it's volume as the whipping went on. And the whipping went on and on, as if it was never going to stop. Her back was a sea of pain. Then the whipping finally stopped.

"Good work, Lisa", said Dr. Evans, "Maka, you will receive another whipping tomorrow, and the two days afterwards, I want you to be ready for your whipping at three o clock. If you screw that up, I'll pull your fingernails out. Also, open wide". Maka was still crying from the whipping, but she pulled herself together and opened her mouth as wide as she could. Dr. Evans pushed the rag inside. Then he took off her blindfold and tied it over her mouth.

"For the rest of my brother's stay, you'll sleep on the floor", said Dr. Evans as he undid the restraints.


	155. Argument with Lisa

Maka was angry at Lisa. She had told her they wouldn't get caught. And they didn't get caught, Maka got caught. And now she would get three more whippings, and have this gag in her mouth for who knows how long. And sleep on the floor while Lisa would get to sleep in her bed. These were the thoughts that went through Maka's head as she lied sobbing on the floor in front of the whipping post. As she got up, she swore to herself that she would get revenge on Lisa. Lisa tricked her, sold her out to save her back, and she would pay for it. Maka went back to work. At first, Maka swallowed her anger. If she picked a fight with Lisa now, she would just earn another, probably even worse punishment. If there was something she wanted to avoid it was that.

In the evening, after they had been allowed to go to sleep. Maka decided to try and talk the situation out with Lisa. Maka mmmphed, she had forgotten that she still had the gag in her mouth, despite the fact that her jaw was already hurting like crazy from it. Maka wondered if she was turning into Meme. She hoped not, her owner would have crucified Meme by now. Maka pointed at Lisa. Lisa pointed at her chest. Maka didn't know, did Lisa understand or not .Without any way to ensure that they were on the same wavelength, communication would be pointless. But Maka had to try, nonetheless. She waved her fist threateningly in Lisa's face. Lisa shrugged with her shoulder's. She was obviously playing dumb. Maka grabbed at Lisa's face and pretended to rip a scarf down. This should get the point across. Lisa held up her hand, having only the middle finger pointing upwards. Maka wondered whether that meant that Lisa understood or that she was still clueless. Maka assumed that Lisa knew what Maka was gesturing about. Maka waved her fist in front of Lisa's face again.

Maka felt that this was enough of berating Lisa for one night. She now go to sleep. Maka climbed in her bed, only to promptly shoved off by Lisa. The nerve Lisa had. First, she gets Maka into trouble, avoiding detection herself, with resulted in a reward for her. And now she had the guts to press the reward she had so unjustly earned. And there was nothing Maka could do about it, absolutely nothing. Maka would have to go to sleep and be patient. Going to sleep on the hard floor was difficult, but not impossible. She had slept in much worse conditions by now, like the slaver's truck or the standing cell, sleeping on the ground shouldn't be a problem. But it was still uncomfortable. The next morning, she awoke thirsty, but she couldn't drink anything, because of her gag. Maybe she should take it out? Would she get caught? Probably not, but after the last thing she wouldn't probably get caught doing, she decided to play it safe.

As the day moved along, Maka came to dread her three o'clock whipping, but there was nothing she could do about it. The only thing she could do would be to make sure that Lisa would also get a whipping. If they whipped her first, they would be exhausted when it came to whipping Maka. But there were two of them, they could just take turns. Getting Lisa into trouble would not wield any tangible benefit for Maka, but it would make her feel better. But how could she set up Lisa to get a whipping. Lisa would probably be on her very best behavior, as she was probably afraid that her involvement in Maka sneaking out would somehow become known. But on the other hand, what did Lisa have to fear? Looking at the clock, Maka found that it was time to report for her whipping. She went to her quarter, undressed and fetched the whip. At three o'clock, she received her whipping. Since her back still hurt from yesterday's whipping, this whipping hurt even worse than normal. The next day, her owner decided that her back was already damaged too much and needed time to heal, so the whipping was applied on the front. Maka was thankful for this. If she had gotten the whipping on her back, it would probably have drawn blood. During the whipping, Maka shed almost no tears, due to the fact that she hadn't drunken anything over the last two days.

"Do you know that you can drink by soaking the gag in water and sucking it from the gag?", asked Dr. Evans, "That's how my father's slaves deal with the thirst". Maka had to admit that this advice was useful. She made a bow, like she had seen Lisa do it, in order to express thankfulness towards her owner. Then Maka went into the bathroom to test Dr. Evans' advice. She turned on the faucet and held her mouth below the stream, as far as it was possible with the sink in her way. The water splashed on her face, teasing her. But it also soaked into the rag. After a few seconds, Maka could taste the wetness of the rag. She began to greedily suck the water out of the rag. It was refreshing to drink water after a period of dehydration. After the third whipping, which was, like the last one, delivered on her front, Dr. Evans removed the gag. Later, that day, after Lisa and Maka had permission to go to bed, Maka decided to confront Lisa.

"I hate you", said Maka. Lisa shrugged.

"You want to know why? Because you let me get caught at the winter solstice", said Maka. Lisa pointed at Maka.

"Yes, me", said Maka. Lisa looked down, then she pointed at Maka.

"Don't act like you feel ashamed of yourself", said Maka, "If you were really sorry, you would have warned me before master caught me". Lisa held her eyes open, before she stretched her arms wide, after which she pointed at Maka again.

"And now you're mocking me?", said Maka, "at least let me sleep in my bed". Lisa shook her head. Then she folded her hands and rested her head on them, before closing her eyes. Lisa turned the light off and got into bed. Maka turned the light on again.

"I'm not done with you", said Maka. Lisa left the room. She would tell Dr. Evans. Maka had to stop her.

"Okay, I'll be quiet", said Maka. Lisa came back and went to sleep. So did Maka, who lied awake for a long time, planning her revenge.


	156. Maka's revenge

By the time Maka woke up the next morning, she knew what was to do. After breakfast, she went to work. She she first went to her owner's room to collect laundry. In the laundry room, she sorted the laundry based on how expensive the clothes were. Since Dr. Evans didn't trust her with his most expensive clothes, there wasn't much of a risk of causing a lot of damage. She sorted the cheap clothes, which were still so expensive that only a few people in Maka's village have been able to afford such clothes, they were typically the people who were ransomed, on one pile and put the other pile, with the moderately expensive clothing, after checking that there was nothing that would color the other clothes in, into the laundry machine. Now it was time to talk to Lisa. Maka found her cleaning the library.

"Lisa?", asked Maka. Lisa looked at her.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry for how I've talked to you yesterday", said Maka, "can you forgive me?". Lisa nodded, and smiled. She then stretched her arms out. Maka hugged Lisa. Lisa's body was warm. After a few minutes of hugging, the two women let go of each other and went back to their respective tasks. Maka found that it was now time to look for her owner. She looked through the entire house, but couldn't find him anywhere. This was bad, it could ruin her plan, and she didn't know how long Dr. Alfred Evans and Lisa would stay. She might not get a second change at pulling this off. After she had already given up finding him, she went to shovel snow, which was where she found him. He was sitting behind the snow pile from yesterday. Maka wondered what he was doing. Then he threw a snowball over the pile towards Louis K.'s yard. Louis K. retaliated in kind, hitting Maka. Not wanting to make herself a target, Maka ducked for cover. Dr. Evans threw another snowball at Louis K.

"Master?", asked Maka.

"What is?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Should I clean your office, master?", asked Maka, "It's a week since it's been cleaned".

"Not now", said Dr. Evans, throwing another snowball at Louis K., who's head was poking out from his snow pile. Dr. Evans threw another snowball, hitting Louis K. squarely in the head. This snowball was followed by another and another. Maka began to wonder whether the Louis K. was dead or something like that, because he didn't react to the snowballs.

"Something's not right", mumbled Dr. Evans, throwing another snowball at Louis K. Then he got up and began to slowly walk towards Louis K.'s entrenchment. Louis K. ran past Maka from behind and tackled Dr. Evans, knocking him down.

"Do you give up? Do you give up?", asked Louis K., rubbing snow in Dr. Evans face.

"Okay, okay, you win", said Dr. Evans, getting up, "but how can you be over here if your head is over there".

"A decoy", said Louis K. pulling "his head" from his snow pile. It was simply several of his clothes wrapped up in a ball, covered by his cap. The whole construction was kept in place with a couple of sticks, so that it couldn't get knocked over by snowballs. Coming closer, Maka could see a trace leading away from the snow pile. At first, it seemed that Louis K. had crawled on all fours. After he got around the corner of his house, he seemed to have preferred his feet again.

"Clever", said Dr. Evans, "Congratulations on winning. I'll be going back inside, see you later".

"See ya", said Louis K.. Maka then shoveled the snow. After she was done shoveling snow, she went into the kitchen and began preparing lunch. After she had cleaned the dishes, she looked for her owner again. She suspected that he was in his office. She went up to the door and knocked on it.

"Yes?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Should I clean your office now, master?", asked Maka.

"Yes", said Dr. Evans. Maka entered the office and started cleaning. She spotted the object that she needed on his desk. An ink cartridge, for a fountain pen. She would have to steal it. But how? She would have to wait until he was distracted. She first went to clean the bookshelf. She dusted the document in the golden frame, his diploma, and went on to the other bookshelf. Then she began cleaning the desk, taking care not to disturb her owner's work. He was also interested in keeping Maka out of the way of his work, because he scooted to the far side of his desk. Maka used this opportunity to scoop an ink cartridge off the desk. After she had finished cleaning the desk, she picked up the cartridge. She finished cleaning the office, and went into the living room. There she fetched a box with sewing supplies. She took out a needle and pierced the ink cartridge at both ends, which went much better than Maka expected. She went into the laundry room, picked up one of the pants from the cheap clothes pile and put the ink cartridge into the pocket. Then she went to find Lisa.

"Could you put the laundry in the washing machine?", asked Maka. Lisa nodded, then she shrugged.

"The clothes are already on a pile, just put the pile in the machine", said Maka, before she went on to explain how to start the machine. Lisa nodded and went into the laundry room. A bit later she came back out, carrying the clothes that had been washed and started to hang them onto the clothes rack. Now all Maka had to do was wait.

After two hours, Maka went to check on the machine, it was done. She opened the machine. The clothes were blue, like expected. Maka went to find her owner.

"I have bad news, master", said Maka.

"What happened?", asked Dr. Evans.

"Lisa put your clothes into the washing machine two hours ago, master", said Maka, "now they have changed colors".

"What!", exclaimed Dr. Evans, before he ran to the laundry room.


	157. Lisa's punishment

"What is?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans, who Dr. Evans passed on the way.

"Your slave put clothes into the washing machine, and now they have changed color, master's brother", said Maka.

"That sounds bad", said Dr. Alfred Evans, following his brother.

"Doesn't seem like anything important was colored in", said Dr. Evans, digging through the blue clothes.

"So, Lisa did this?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans.

"According to Maka, yes", said Dr. Evans.

"We'll see what she has to say about it", said Dr. Alfred Evans. They went upstairs, where Lisa was cleaning the bathroom.

"Lisa", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa looked up at him and bowed.

"Did you launder my brother's clothes?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa nodded.

"They're blue now", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa looked shocked, and let her head hang down. Then she pointed at Maka, before she gestured putting clothes into the laundry machine.

"So Maka told you to put the clothes into the laundry machine?", asked Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa nodded. They went downstairs into the laundry room again. On the way down, Dr. Evans asked Maka again whether she had told Lisa to put the clothes into the washing machine. Maka confirmed this. In the laundry room, Lisa looked at the clothes in shock before she fell down to her knees and looked imploringly at her owner. Maka couldn't say she didn't enjoy this.

"I wonder how this could happen?", asked Dr. Evans, "none of these clothes was blue before they were washed". Maka just realized a grave error in her plan.

"What about this one", said Dr. Alfred Evans, pulling out the trousers Maka had put the ink cartridge in.

"So they were the ones who lost color", said Dr. Evans, "Even I know that you don't put colorful and white clothes together".

"You're in trouble, Lisa", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa looked at her owner imploringly. Turning to his brother, he asked, "how much did these clothes cost?".

"Not much, you don't need to pay for the damages, just punish Lisa", said Dr. Evans. Lisa was on her knees, her hands clasped, looking at her owner imploringly.

"Go to Maka's quarter, disrobe completely, and fetch the whip", ordered Dr. Alfred Evans. Lisa moved to obey.

"Maka, throw out these ruined clothes", ordered Dr. Evans, "then give Lisa her whipping".

"Yes, master", said Maka, with an enthusiastic smile on her face. As Maka gathered up the clothes, she contemplated how she would whip Lisa. Since Maka had received many whippings, but had only given two herself, she wondered what technique she should use to maximize Lisa's pain. The most painful whippings were the ones were her owner spread the lashes in a pattern on her back, because it maximized the impact. But which pattern should she chose. The grid? Or the square? Or maybe the triangle? What about the circle? There was so much to chose from. Maka decided that she would go with the grid, since it seemed to have the most interferences of any pattern. But maybe she could vary it somewhat by landing some of the lashes diagonally. That way the interference would increase even more and with it Lisa's pain. After Maka had finished putting the clothes away, she went to her quarter, so that she could fulfill her duty of whipping Lisa, which she would do with pleasure.

She arrived to find Lisa already waiting in Maka's quarter, she had goosebumps on her skin from the cold air in Maka's quarter. Maka grabbed Lisa's arm and began restraining Lisa. She tightened the restraints to a point where Dr. Evans would consider it "too tight". Then Maka adjusted the restraints to a high where Lisa's feet where barely touching the ground. Then Maka's owner came in, followed by his brother. They began to examine the whole thing. Then they ordered Maka to loosen the restraints and adjust their high downwards. Maka grudgingly obeyed, but her tone of voice earned her a slap across the cheek. After the corresponding adjustments had been made, they ordered Maka to begin with the whipping.

Maka arranged the lashes in a grid like pattern. Lisa was unable to scream in pain, but Maka could see other sings that the whipping was having its desired effect. Each lash rippled through Lisa's body, and Lisa began some kind of screaming. It was much quieter than actual screaming, but still easily audible, even though it could easily be drowned out by loud talking. Maka still enjoyed these screams, she was getting her revenge. After Maka had completed the grid pattern, she layered a triangle on top of it. While she was doing the triangle, Dr. Evans told her to spread the lashes out a bit, too avoid hurting Lisa too badly. Maka obeyed reluctantly. She could hear how Lisa felt the relief. Maka should have spread the lashes out a bit more from the beginning, so that Lisa would not be granted a relief now. But it was too late for that. Maka would just have to make the whipping longer. After a while, Lisa's back was completely covered in red lines, which frequently overlapped, Dr. Evans spoke up.

"That's enough", said Dr. Alfred Evans. Maka pretended not to hear him.

"That's enough", said Dr. Evans, grabbing Maka's arm mid lash. But Maka still managed to get that one last lash in. Maka grudgingly undid Lisa's restraints. It had been fun while it lasted, but it didn't nearly lasted long enough.

"Disrobe completely", ordered Dr. Evans. Maka wondered what that order meant, Lisa was already naked.

"I mean you", said Dr. Evans.

"I'm sorry, master", said Maka hastily as she disrobed, "Yes, master". Why did Maka have to disrobe? Dr. Alfred Evans helped Lisa up onto her feet, while Dr. Evans grabbed Maka's arm and affixed her to the whipping post. Maka didn't dare to resist. Why was she getting a whipping? Maybe the one she gave Lisa was not hard enough. But Maka had whipped Lisa harder than she had whipped Samantha, back when Dr. Evans' father visited her owner, and that whipping was acceptable, so how could this be too weak. Lisa had regained some composure.

"Since Maka delivered two more lashes after we told her to stop, you now have five minutes to whip her at your hearts content", said Dr. Evans.

"In case you're wondering, the reward from earlier this week is hereby revoked", said Dr. Alfred Evans.

"This means that you and Maka will share a bed again", said Dr. Evans, handing Lisa the whip.

"Anyway, you have five minutes to whip Maka however you want", said Dr. Evans, "have fun, we will be back in five minutes". Maka couldn't believe what was happening. Revenge was best served cold, but now Maka would get to sample some revenge fresh out of the oven.

"And the time starts now", said Dr. Evans as he left the room with his brother.


	158. Forgiveness

Maka wondered whether five minutes were long enough to whip someone to death. Maybe if Lisa put a lot of effort into it. Maka was in a situation where Lisa was allowed to kill her. If she had just restrained her thirst for revenge. How much would Lisa whip her? When would Lisa start? Maybe Lisa didn't know that Maka set her up. But if she did, Maka could be certain that Lisa would make her suffer extraordinarily. Maka cursed her carelessness. Her owner had even told her to stop, and she didn't listen. She knew that disobeying him could not lead to anything good, but she did so anyway, and now she would pay the price, possibly in blood or with her life. The cold air of Maka' quarter was chilling Maka's naked body, giving her goosebumbs. Lisa was probably thinking about how she could maximize Maka's pain. But she didn't need to hurry. While getting a whipping feels like forever, Maka knew that they didn't actually last very long. Lisa could easily wait a minute and still flay Maka's skin off. And there was nothing Maka could do about it. She was defenseless. Completely defenseless.

Maka started to cry. And she started to beg Lisa for mercy. Lisa remained silent. And Maka continued to beg. She apologized for being so overly enthusiastic about whipping Lisa. She apologized for giving so many lashes that her owner ordered her to stop whipping. She apologized and begged for forgiveness. But Lisa remained silent. Maka begged Lisa to go easy on her. But Lisa remained silent. How could Lisa talk? She didn't have a tongue. Maka wanted to somehow get out of this situation, but she couldn't.

Why hadn't Lisa started whipping Maka yet? Was she trying to figure something out, like how to maximize pain. It coludn't take that long, it only took Maka about a minute, unless Lisa had some great idea that she just needed to work out. Maka wondered what Lisa could have though off to make it even more painful. Maka would soon find it out. But what was taking Lisa so long? Maka wondered how much time had passed by now. Was it a minute, or two. Or maybe Lisa still had four minutes left. Or more. Could it be that the first minute wasn't even over yet? She was certain that Lisa would start the whipping any second now, and it would probably cause Maka to bleed all over the floor.

"The five minutes are over", said Dr. Evans, "remove Maka's restraints now". Lisa did as she was told. Maka couldn't believe it, Lisa had not whipped her, despite being allowed to do so and having a reason to do so.

"Thank you, Lisa", said Maka, "Thank you". Lisa grabbed Maka and pulled her into hug. Maka hugged Lisa back. Lisa had forgiven Maka. Maybe Maka could forgive Lisa. She should forgive Lisa, it was the right thing to do. After all, she already had her revenge. She went over board with her revenge. Lisa could have gotten a much worse punishment than just a whipping. Realizing this, the tears in Maka's eyes began flowing more freely. Maka didn't know why Lisa had forgiven her, but Lisa had forgiven her.

"Get back to work", ordered Dr. Evans. The two captives broke their hug. Lisa bowed.

"Yes, master", said Maka. They both went back to their respective tasks. Lisa cleaned the upper story, Maka the ground floor. As she scrubbed the floor, Maka contemplated why Lisa had forgone taking revenge on Maka, despite the fact that she could easily do so, with both her and Maka's owner's blessing. She couldn't find an answer, she only knew that she was glad that Lisa didn't whip her. Maka decided that she would ask.

"Why didn't you whip me?", asked Maka, when she an Lisa where in the kitchen while their owner's were eating dinner. Lisa raised her arms and smiled. Then she pointed at Maka, making a movement as if she was using a whip on someone with her arm and frowned. She then raised one hand as she smiled more and more. Until here smile became scary when she had her hand as high as it could possibly go. Lisa then put her hands out as if she was weighting something, before she shook her head. Lisa then stopped gesturing. Maka had to admit that she hadn't understood a thing. She would probably never know what philosophical principles Lisa subscribed to, that made her not give Maka a whipping. She also didn't think it was possible to figure it out from Lisa's gestures.

"Thanks, I appreciate that", said Maka. After an hour, they were allowed to retire for the evening.


	159. Louis K's plot

The next day, Dr. Alfred Evans and Lisa left. Maka was glad to finally have the bed to herself again. It seemed that after the winter solstice, the winter actually began to lighten up. The days became longer and the temperature slowly climbed upwards. It snowed less and less frequently, so Maka had to shovel snow less and less frequently. After a while, all the snow had melted. Maka realized that she was a captive for almost a year now. Escaping proved to be more difficult than she had thought. If she could just get her hands on an angle grinder, then she could cut her collar off. But where could she get one? She would have to wait for an opportunity to steal one. Somehow she assumed that Louis K. owned one, stored somewhere where Jonathan couldn't get to it, of course. She didn't know why she assumed that, it was just a hutch. But it was driving her crazy.

One day, Dr. Evans announced that today was the spring festival. It made sense to Maka, after all, it was spring. Dr. Evans went on to explain that he would let Maka have some time off so she could attend, but after what she pulled at the winter solstice, he wouldn't let her. Maka apologized again and went to work. After her owner left, she went to work in the garden. Jonathan was working in Louis K.'s garden. Louis K. entered the garden.

"I'll be in the next town over for today", said Louis K., "I'll be back tomorrow. You're not allowed to leave the house until I come back".

"Yes, master", said Jonathan, once Louis K. had left with Ninon, Jonathan asked Maka, "I'm going to sneak out, want to join me?"

"No thanks", said Maka, "I got caught the last time I sneaked out, and I don't want to find out what the punishment for a repeated offense is".

"Well, your loss", said Jonathan. Maka figured that Jonathan had to know for himself what he would do. Jonanthan eventually left, leaving Maka alone with her work. As Maka was ready to go back inside, she noticed that Jonathan had forgotten to close the front door. This was a chance to see if Louis K. had something useful. But what would happen to her if she got caught? She would probably get crucified. But she would probably regret not looking through Louis K.'s house forever if she didn't use this chance. Taking a deep breath, she went up to the front door, and after a quick look around, she went through it.

Once inside, she went through his anteroom into the living room. Louis K.'s living room mostly looked normal, except for a container with water, in which several black fish were swimming around. The smallest of the fish were about as large as Maka's hand, the largest twice as larg. When one of the fish opened his mouth, Maka could see it filled with long sharp teeth. It was obvious that these fish were predators. On the bottom of the tank was gravel, with a few rocks and plants lining it. Apparently Louis K. really liked fish. Maka then turned her attention to his bookshelf. In the hope of finding something interesting, she started to browse through it. But he must be keeping the good stuff somewhere else. On the other hand, Maka didn't know what she expected, maybe to find a gun hidden in one of the books.

Maka figured that if Louis K. was keeping some secret stuff, he would keep it in his basement, which is where Maka would keep her secret stuff, if she had secret stuff and if she had a house with a basement she could call her own. Maka slowly went downwards into the basement. One room in the basement was filled with folders containing old bills and payment confirmations and other boring documents. Another room was an museum of musical instruments. Maka noticed that none of these exhibits were something that wasn't manufactured anymore, so she wondered why Louis K had build a museum for them. Then next room was behind a heavy locked door. The mere fact that she couldn't enter it made this room extremely interesting to Maka. She would have to find the key somewhere. But maybe Louis K. carried it on his person. Maka decided to keep her eyes peeled. The last room was a room filled with various tools. Maka immediately began searching the room, and after a few minutes, she indeed found an angle grinder. But it had its disk removed. It wouldn't cut without a diamond disk. She had to find some. After some time of searching, she found steel disks, but not diamond disks. Maka wondered whether these would do the job as well. Maka doubted it, and she wouldn't risk it. Then she could hear someone enter the house. Maka held her breath. She had to hide. But where? She hid behind a shelf. That way she wouldn't be immediately seen if someone came in.

Then Maka figured that the best course of action would be to leave the house as soon as possible. She carefully went around the shelf and out of the door, always looking that there was nobody coming and listening intensively.

"Anyway", asked Ninon from the living room as Maka had reached the stairs, "What do you want me to do?"

"Kill general Frank McGrath", said Louis K.. That was one of West Wyoming's brightest generals.

"Why so much money?", asked Ninon.

"I need you to make it look like the GISD did it", said Louis K., "I have one of their agents on ice, her uniform should fit, and I know a guy who could fake you a GISD card".

"And how should I frame them?", asked Ninon.

"Leave the evidence so that the military finds it", said Louis K., "This breach of trust will push the other generals into open revolt".

"I understand", said Ninon, "I'll go now". A short while later, Maka heard a door open and close. The same noise repeated a short while later. Maka figured that it was time to leave now. She had to do something to prevent Louis K.'s plan from succeeding.


	160. For West Wyoming

Maka left his house in a hurry, closing the door behind her. However, Ninon and Louis K. where already out of sight. Maka had to do something, Ninon was on her way to West Wyoming this very moment. Maka wondered how long it would take Ninon to get to West Wyoming and kill general Frank McGrath. Would the rest of Louis K.'s plan work out? Probably not, but Maka could not sit by and do nothing while he was actively trying to destroy her homeland. They had been taught in school that a nation is only as strong as its people. She needed to be strong for West Wyoming. To be strong for her homeland. She had to do something.

Maka was so nervous that she was barely able to think. She first went back to her work, to calm herself down somewhat. After some consideration, she came to the conclusion that she would have to warn the Goverment Interest and Safety Department, short GISD, about Ninon. She wondered how much time she had left to do so. It took three weeks until the death of the new Confederates customs officer hit the news, so Maka assumed she had two weeks to save the general, or at least notify GISD, so that they could safe him. This meant that she had to act soon.

She went into the library and began to study the maps again. They weren't that useful, but given the fact that she knew where she was, she could estimate how long it would take her to reach West Wyoming. She concluded that it would take her ten days to do so. Maka started to pack. She pulled out the backpack from the basement. She put in her dresses and her winter coat, since it could still get very cold at night, even though not cold enough to freeze to death. She would pack some food later. Then she went into the basement and picked up some empty whiskey bottles, which she filled with water and packed into the backpack, too. She would need twenty of these bottles to actually have enough water for the journey. She would have to find a river or something to refill her bottles on the way. She also packed a knife, a long kitchen knife, with a blade almost as long as her lower arm. Then a hammer and a saw. While digging through the tools, she found a hatchet, which she took, too. She remembered that she her owner kept a lighter in the same drawer as the whip, so she took the lighter. She might need something to cook stuff, so she took a pot from the kitchen. The backpack was now almost full. Tomorrow, she would fill it up with food.

Maka then resumed her duties. She wouldn't want to cause undue suspicion. That could be deadly. When her owner came back from the spring festival in the evening, he looked like he had a very good time. When he entered, he smelled of alcohol. He had obviously drunken quite a bit of liquor. He would probably have a hangover tomorrow. This would be good. Maka prepared dinner, but he only ate a few bites, before he went and played the piano. His playing was much worse than usual. It was painful to listen to it, but Maka didn't really have a choice. After a few hours, he allowed her to retire for the evening.

Maka would have to get up early, but she couldn't set an alarm. She was afraid of going to sleep. Afraid that she would sleep for too long. She turned of the light and waited. She should get some sleep. Tomorrow would be an important day. She would have to be rested. She would have to be strong. But what if she got up too late? She decided that she would get up at four o'clock. Then she would have three hours until her owner would wake up. She tried to get some sleep. But she couldn't get any proper sleep. It eluded her. She couldn't find proper sleep. She only dipped into sleep momentarily, just to wake up a few seconds later and check the alarm clock in a panic, just to find that only a few minutes had passed since she the last time she checked. This night went by extremely slowly. While she was lying there, awake, waiting to fall asleep again, she thought about everything that could go wrong. She doubted that what she was doing was a good idea. But she had to do it. For West Wyoming!

While she waited for time to pass, she eventually came to wish that it would stop. She was afraid of tomorrow. But eventually, the new day came. At four o'clock Maka got out of bed and went into the kitchen. As she took the bread, she wondered if she should kill Dr. Evans. It would buy her more time until her escape was noticed. It would increase her overall odds of success. Maka took a knife, blade a bit longer than her hand. She nervously weighed it in her hand. This would be her first murder. As she went towards his room, her heart became heavy. She couldn't kill him. He had cared for her when she was sick. She would probably have died if he hadn't called a doctor. She couldn't kill him. So she put the knife back and packed provisions. She doubted that it would last long enough. She would have to forage for supplies. She put on a scarf to hide her collar and left the house.

"Goodbye, master", said Maka as she looked back at his house, "You could have been better, but you could also have been a lot worse". She took a good last look. If she ever saw this house again, it would be because she was going to get crucified. Her heart was heavy as she said goodbye to this place. While there were many painful memories, there were also some good ones. Here she had learned to read. She had met Jonathan and Ms. Nakatsukasa. But it was time to go. For West Wyoming!


	161. Flee the city

Maka began walking away. She traveled down the road, until it merged into the main road, a nice brick road. Maka liked these roads better than cement roads. She remembered that her owner had said that these asphalt roads were build during the golden age, but not anymore, as almost nobody uses cars anymore. While he has a car, he doesn't use it, because they require gasoline, and that stuff is just extremely expensive. Maka could understand this, since she knew that gasoline was produced on fuel farms, where the slaves only lasted five years before they died of the carcinogens in the plants. But Maka couldn't muse on that now, she had to go. As Maka continued on the main road, she eventually spotted a police officer, who was leaning on a streetlight.

What should Maka do? She just realized that she looked exactly like one would expect a runaway slave to look like. Just walking past the police officer was not an option. Maybe she should give up. If she went back now, she could easily undo her preparations and go back to work as if nothing had ever happened, her owner would never know. If it wasn't for the fact that her homeland was in grave danger, she would probably turn back now. But her homeland was in danger. She couldn't turn back. She had to get past the police officer. He was facing away from her. She had a knife. She could kill him, and take his gun. As Maka took the knife out from the backpack, she had to think of Jacqueline. Maybe this police officer was just trying to feed his family. If Maka killed him, his family would starve. Maybe his widow and her children would end up as slaves if he died. Maka put her knife back. Maka went into the gardens next to the road and went around these houses. She sneaked quietly through there. That way, she would pass the police officer.

"Is someone there?", asked the police officer, with his hand on his holstered weapon. Maka looked in fright. He was looking right back at her. Her breathing stopped.

"I demand that you show yourself!", shouted the police officer. He was now moving closer. Maka thought about moving onwards, to change her position. But that would confirm the police officer in his suspicion. Then he would go after Maka. But he was already doing that now. On the other hand, he didn't know that there was a human hiding in the bushes, so Maka could probably ambush him. She wouldn't even have to kill him. She could just put the knife at his throat, take his gun, make him promise not to tell anybody and let him go. The police officer had reached the hedge. He stopped and looked on into the bushes. He seemed to be contemplating if he should go on. He apparently hadn't spotted Maka yet. Maka didn't even move a muscle. She was completely still and silent.

"I must be seeing things", said the police officer to himself, turning around and walking int the direction of the town square. It was now that Maka realized that she had been holding her breath. She expelled the old air, and sucked in new, oxygen rich air. She continued to sneak through the gardens for a while, before she went back onto the road. This was a close call. Maka continued along the road until she saw the border of the city. At least she thought this was it. What she saw was a simple sign, standing a bit removed from the buildings of the city. The road was bordered by fields. Up until now, Maka hadn't really done anything that would by itself identify her as a runaway. While slaves weren't allowed to leave their master's estate without permission, it was common for slaves to have duties that require them to leave their master's house. It was only the fact that Maka hid her collar, which was a huge offense in itself, and carried a backpack with several days worth of food and water, that marked her as a runaway. But once she was out of the town, everybody would assume that she was a runaway, which was exactly why she hid her collar. But still, she had expected a bit more security here, Maybe a barbed wire fence, with guard towers and snipers. No, that would be ridiculous, but the cities in West Wyoming all had a checkpoint that entrants needed to pass, even though it was trivial to sneak past such checkpoints. But here, there was no security, nothing to stop escaping captives, such as herself, from sneaking out, or stop criminals, such as Ninon, from sneaking in. It couldn't really be that simply, could it?

Without losing a moment, Maka jumped into the field and hit the ground. She remained completely motionless, listening intensively for any signs of disturbance. She could hear nothing but the soft wind carrying fresh air over the land. It was coming from the field of repentance, at least Maka thought it contained a soft smell of decaying flesh. But it was fresh air, nonetheless. The thought of hanging from a cross, waiting to die, made Maka want to vomit. But she restrained her innards and began to move on. She crept along the ground. Bit by bit. She would make a large detour around the sign. She moved very slowly, to avoid disturbing the grass too much. Her senses were working sharper than ever before, she could hear everything. Her eyes picked up even the littlest rest of light. She could smell the grass, the bricks of the road, the bread Ms Nakatsukasa was baking at the moment, the corpses on the field of repentance. Thinking about it made Maka balk. She couldn't afford to make even a single mistake. She moved ahead even slower. She had now passed the city's border. But she didn't dare to get up just yet. She continued to creep along the ground until she had put some distance between her and the sign. Then she got up into a squat and looked at the sign. She realized she had just wasted time sneaking past an inanimate object.

Looking back onto the city, Maka realized that this was her last change to back out of her plan. All she would have to do would be to get back to Dr. Evans house. Since he might already be awake, she would have to hide her backpack in the garden and then enter the house. Alternatively, she could hide her stuff and sit down on his doorstep, then claim that she locked herself out as she was checking for mail.


	162. On the run

But turning back now would be an act of treason against her homeland. She had to pull this off, she owed to it to her homeland. With new found determination, she went onwards. She followed the road until daybreak. She knew that the sun rose in the east, and that West Wyoming was also to the east. Therefore she had to go east now. She didn't want to go off the path yet, so she continued following the road until a dirt path lead off towards to the north east. It was a rather nice path, going along the edge of a lush spring forest. She could see the trees regrowing their leaves. This was the time of the year when everything gained life again. The world dies each year during winter, and in the spring it is reborn. Each year, the spring made Maka happy. Maybe this was the best time of the year to escape.

The path eventually led past the forest, where she could see a large complex in the distance. High fences, guard towers. It was either some kind of reformative labor camp or a farm. Maybe it was a fuel farm. Then Maka remembered a case in which her owner had represented the plaintiff. While she was bringing her owner his lunch, he had discussed the matter with his client. She had heard from the discussion which regulations fuel farms had to follow. It was illegal to cultivate the fuel plant within ten kilometers of human settlements, later Maka had figured out that it took roughly two hours by foot to travel that far. Then it had to be at least five hundred meters away from any rivers or lakes, a kilometer if said river or lake was a source of drinking water. Fuel farms also needed large chimneys in to comply with other safety regulation, which this installation was lacking. Therefore this couldn't be a fuel farm. It probably was a regular farm. Maka mused that if she got caught and her owner showed mercy, he would probably sell her to one of these places, probably mutilating her first, so that she couldn't run away again, for example by ramming a large piece of wood through her foot and then dipping the foot in boiling oil. Even the non deadly punishments made Maka shudder. But she had to move on. She didn't want to risk one of the guards on the towers seeing her, they may think that she was one of their slaves and go after her, so she hurriedly walked past the farm.

After the farm was out of view, Maka looked around to make sure that nobody was following her. Once she was certain of that, she went to look for a suitable place for breakfast. She found a large rock that she could sit on. As she sat down on it, she wondered for one brief moment how it had gotten here. But the very next moment she decided that it didn't matter. She took some bread and a water bottle out of her backpack and began to eat. Her owner was probably coming downstairs now. Maka could picture it, how he arrived in his dining room to find that neither mail nor breakfast had been prepared. He would angrily call for her, then he would look throughout his house for her. He would eventually, after seeing that her bed was empty and that she couldn't be found anywhere, figure that she ran away. Then he would probably call the police and put a large bounty on her head. Then he would probably sit down to eat breakfast. At the next opportunity, he would go to the slave market to buy himself a new slave. Maybe he'll buy something with decent breasts this time. Then he would go to the carpenter and order a cross for Maka. He didn't have any slaves to act as executioners, so he would probably hire a group of executioners for Maka. Maybe Louise would be Maka's head executioner.

As Maka was chewing the bread, she wondered what Ninon was doing in the moment. She was probably sleeping in her first class train cart. Maybe she had already ordered something to drink. Maybe a bottle of some high percentage alcohol. She would take a shot, then build a Molotov cocktail out of the bottle and throw it out of the window. Then Ninon would eat the finest food available on the train. Maybe Ninon was already in West Wyoming. Sleeping in a cheap hotel room. Or maybe an expensive hotel room. Maka assumed that a hit man, or in this case, hit woman would take the cheapest room available, to avoid drawing attention to herself. Ninon was probably eating breakfast in her cheap hotel room, already planning how she would burn down the general's house. But Maka would warn them. Ninon would be arrested and executed. A young lady, chopped into little pieces. Maka hoped she would get to watch Ninon die.

After Maka had finished eating her breakfast, she continued on her way. She would have to cover a lot of ground today, if she wanted to avoid the bounty hunters. Samantha had fallen victim to them, and Samantha was young and strong, like Maka. Maka only knew that she would have to be very careful. As she walked towards her homeland, she oriented herself based on the position of the sun. That way, she could be sure that she wasn't moving away from West Wyoming. Her biggest fear was that she would walk past West Wyoming. But she could hardly ask anybody for directions. But then it occurred to her that she would have to ask sooner or later. She could either do that, or she could rely on her luck. It would be irresponsible to rely on her luck. But who could she ask?


End file.
